Brazilians have taken to the streets of Santos in Brazil to mourn and pay their respects to the late Pele after the football great died on Thursday at the age of 82.
Pele spent the majority of his career at Santos, scoring a remarkable 643 goals in 656 competitive appearances across a spell spanning 18 years, during which he led the club to six league titles, two Copa Libertadores, and 10 Campeonato Paulista titles.
Fans gathered outside Santos' Vila Belmiro stadium to leave flowers, wave giant flags, and pray for the Brazilian legend as the southeastern city declared seven days of mourning for its hero.
Nicknamed "O Rei" — The King — Pele had one of the most storied careers in sport and is the only player to win the World Cup three times.
Tributes have been flooding in as figures from the world of sport, politics, entertainment, and millions of fans around the world offer their thoughts and respects.
Neymar, who tied Pele as Brazil's all-time leading goalscorer at the World Cup in Qatar, said Pele had “transformed football into an art".
“Before Pele, '10' was just a number,” the Paris Saint-Germain star wrote on Instagram, alongside two pictures of himself with the late legend.
“I would say that before Pele, football was just a sport. He transformed football into an art, into entertainment … Football and Brazil gained status thanks to the king. He has gone, but his magic will remain. Pele is eternal!”
