Fans queued to visit Pele

Pele's funeral began at 10 a.m. local time on January 2, but fans lined up since the previous afternoon. Saulo Duarte, Emilio Carmo and Antonio Da Paz were the first present.

Da Paz began to pray when Pele was hospitalized at the end of November. The 67-year-old fan also prepared many posters to honor the "King of Football".

Pele is an honorary citizen of Juquia, Duarte's hometown. The city has a bust of the King of Football, and named a village after Pele's father. Duarte said: "Pele is an incredible person. In addition to being the greatest player of the century, he also has a humility that many players do not have."

Carmo recalls some of Santos' matches. In particular, Pele shined to help the club win the Brazilian championship six times, win the Copa Libertadores twice and win the Intercontinental Cup twice. "With Pele, Santos is like creating a new world for fans," Carmo affirmed.

Pele's funeral will last for 24 hours. The ceremony will be open to the public at the Vila Belmiro courtyard. The funeral will take place at the Ecumenical Necropolis Memorial, less than a kilometer from the yard. However, the coffin will be carried around the city of Santos and through 6th Street, where Pele's 100-year-old mother, Celeste, lives.

Pele died on December 29, from colon cancer. He was hospitalized since the end of November when his body no longer responded to treatment measures.

Pele is the only player to have won the World Cup three times. He was crowned with Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970. Pele and Neymar both hold the record for scoring 77 goals for Brazil. He also held the record for the most goals scored by a club, 643 goals for Santos, until it was broken by Barca's Messi in 2020.