26 Famous Quotes by Pele

Pele is a Brazilian soccer legend who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. His skill, athleticism, and creativity on the field revolutionized the game of soccer and earned him worldwide recognition and admiration. Pele played a pivotal role in the success of the Brazilian national team, helping them to win three World Cup titles. Beyond his accomplishments on the field, Pele has also been a passionate advocate for social justice and equality. He has used his platform to raise awareness about issues such as poverty, racism, and environmental sustainability, and his contributions to society have earned him the respect and admiration of people around the world. (Pele Biography).

Pele Famous Quotes

1. "Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do."

2. "Everything is practice."

3. "Enthusiasm is everything. It must be taut and vibrating like a guitar string."

4. "If I pass away one day, I am happy because I tried to do my best. My sport allowed me to do so much because it's the biggest sport in the world."

5. "Sport is something that is very inspirational for young people."

6. "I am constantly being asked about individuals. The only way to win is as a team. Football is not about one or two or three star players."

7. "If you don't give education to people, it is easy to manipulate them."

8. "I always had a philosophy which I got from my father. He used to say, 'Listen. God gave to you the gift to play football. This is your gift from God. If you take care of your health, if you are in good shape all the time, with your gift from God no one will stop you, but you must be prepared.'"

9. "A lot of people, when a guy scores a lot of goals, think, 'He's a great player', because a goal is very important, but a great player is a player who can do everything on the field. He can do assists, encourage his colleagues, give them confidence to go forward. It is someone who, when a team does not do well, becomes one of the leaders."

10. "I have to trust something that gives me power; I have to believe in something, but in my career I have a lot of moments I cannot explain with God."

11. "A penalty is a cowardly way to score."

12. "You must respect people and work hard to be in shape. And I used to train very hard. When the others players went to the beach after training, I was there kicking the ball."

13. "Everything on earth is a game. A passing thing. We all end up dead. We all end up the same, don't we?"

14. "At 17, I already had responsibility because I took care of my family, but in the football I was young; I wasn't experienced or the captain - I was just in the team."

15. "When I retired, at that time I had a lot of proposals to play in Europe, England, Italy, Spain, Mexico. But I said no, after 18 years I want to rest, because I want to retire."

16. "To be a striker you need to be in good shape."

17. "I've come to accept that the life of a frontrunner is a hard one, that he will suffer more injuries than most men and that many of these injuries will not be accidental."

18. "The bicycle kick is not easy to do. I scored 1,283 goals, and only two or three were bicycle kicks."

19. "All my life I thank God. My family was very religious."

20. "When you are young, you do a lot of stupid things."

21. "When you play against dirty players or very tough players, it's easy to escape because you know what they're going to do. But when the player is tough but intelligent, it's much more difficult."

22. "I don't think I'm a very good businessman. I act too much with my heart."

23. "Yes, I have a lot of business interests. But I don't work for just anyone, and I choose the companies very carefully."

24. "The World Cup is a very complicated tournament - six games, seven if you make it to the final - and maybe if you lose one game you're out, even if you're the best."

25. "Over the years I've learnt to live with two persons in my heart. One is Edson, who has fun with his friends and family; the other is the football player Pele. I didn't want the name. 'Pele' sounds like baby-talk in Portuguese."

26. "When I was a footballer, I surrounded myself with footballers. We were all friends. But in Brasilia you don't know who your friends are. It can be a dangerous place."

― Pele Quotes

* Want to explore more inspiring quotes and their meanings? Head over to this quotes page, where you can find more thought-provoking quotes and their interpretations.

Chief Editor

Tal Gur is an author, founder, and impact-driven entrepreneur at heart. After trading his daily grind for a life of his own daring design, he spent a decade pursuing 100 major life goals around the globe. His journey and most recent book, The Art of Fully Living, has led him to found Elevate Society.