Brazil bids farewell to 'the king' of football

An emotional Brazil began paying its final respects on Monday to football legend Pele with a wake at the stadium where he first took the world's breath away with his dazzling skills.

Thousands of fans and football dignitaries including Fifa president Gianni Infantino slowly filed through the Vila Belmiro, home to Pele's longtime club, Santos, where the coffin bearing the remains of "O Rei" (The King) was displayed in the centre of the field.

Pele, a three-time World Cup winner widely considered the greatest footballer of all time, died on Thursday at age 82 after a long battle with cancer.

Infantino, who attended the wake with the heads of the South American and Brazilian football confederations, said the sport's world governing body would ask all member countries to name a stadium in Pele's honour.

"Pele is eternal. He's a global icon of football," he told journalists in Santos, a southeastern port city 75 kilometers (45 miles) outside Sao Paulo.

Carlos Mota and his 12-year-old son Bernardo had travelled more than 500 kilometers from Rio de Janeiro to pay tribute to their late hero.

"My whole childhood was influenced by what Pele did for Brazil, by his World Cup wins. He was a national idol," Mota, 59, told AFP.

"I've always told my son, there are three indisputable facts: the ball is round, the grass is green and Pele is the greatest of all time."

Bernardo clearly took the lesson to heart.

"I never saw Pele play, but I've seen the videos. He's the greatest player who ever walked the Earth," he said.

Seventy-five-year-old retiree Vera Lucia, who had made the trip from Sao Paulo, was also standing in the queue, which stretched to two kilometers by early afternoon.

"I'm just devastated," she said. "We always loved watching his matches as a family."

Born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, Pele exploded onto the scene at age 15, when he made his professional debut with Santos.

He went on to win the World Cup three times with Brazil, in 1958, 1962 and 1970 -- the only player in history to achieve the feat.

Tributes have poured in from around the world since his death, with a Who's Who of current and former football greats hailing his genius for the "beautiful game."

A stream of athletes, politicians, dignitaries and fans are expected in Santos for his wake, though turnout may be dented somewhat by the New Year's holiday weekend.

Pele's coffin was carried into the stadium by pallbearers dressed in black, led by his son Edinho. The late icon's widow, Marcia Cibele Aoki, the third wife he married in 2016, cried before his open casket as she reached out to touch his head.

Santos' press office said some 5,000 journalists from all over the world had been accredited to cover the wake of Pele, who scored more than 1,000 goals for Santos.