Pelé’s Playbook: Scoring for Social Justice and Racial Unity

O Rei “The King”, also known as Pelé, gained his superstar status with his spectacular performance at the 1958 World Cup. He went on to win 3 World Cups and play professionally in Brazil for 2 decades before moving to the New York Cosmos in the last years of his career. After retiring he became a global ambassador for Soccer and various humanitarian causes.

Soccer’s National Treasure

Pelé is a Brazilian soccer player, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players. He was born on October 23^rd, 1940, in Três Corações, Brazil and grew up in poverty in Bauru, Sãu Paulo. He started his footballing career at a young age where he was taught by his father but had to resort to learning the sport using a grapefruit or a sock stuffed with newspaper tied to a string. Pelé’s extraordinary talent was highly evident at a young age and was quickly recruited to one of Brazil’s biggest teams “Santos FC” and was touted to be “the world’s greatest football player in the world” by his scout to the directors of the club. The second Pelé stepped onto the field with Santos FC he flourished even scoring a goal in his first game 15 years old. He went on to play for the club from 1956 to 1974, eclipsing a staggering 643 goals in official competitions. On top of the numerous personal achievements, he amassed over the 2 decades, his brilliance also helped Santos achieve international prominence by winning countless club trophies.

His call to superstardom was through his illustrious international career with Brazil. His debut at the World Cup in 1958 in Sweden catapulted him to global fame with his display of maturity and skills at just 17 years old. These magisterial performances were pivotal in Brazil’s 3 World Cup triumphs in 1958, 1962 and 1970 and Pelé is still the only player in history who has won 3 FIFA World Cups.

Pelé eventually retired from Brazilian football in 1974 and joined the New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer League (NASL) in 1975 as a global ambassador for football. The popularity of the sport in the United States was revolutionized by his presence in the NASL. Beyond his sporting accomplishments, Pelé was a well-known representative of athlete activism, leveraging his notoriety to raise and influence social and political concerns. His impact was crucial in drawing attention to the suffering of Brazil’s impoverished and in promoting racial equality both domestically and internationally. Pelé met with many world leaders during his lifetime and used his position to promote peace. During his post-retirement years, he remained an active voice in several charitable and humanitarian endeavours even while battling health issues, making a positive impact on football and society worldwide

It was not all Glory & Fame

Although Pelé had his life and career shaped by his unparalleled skill on the pitch, it was not all glory and fame for him. His life and career were ultimately shaped by the socio-political context of race and whiteness, which proved as difficult obstacles that had to be overcome for him to achieve the success he had in his life. Whiteness has always been regarded as the dominant racial identity and can heavily shape public perception and influence social interactions even for highly regarded athletes such as Pelé (Ahmed, 2007).

Brazil has a significant history of racism and whiteness as it is deeply intertwined with the nation’s social and historical development. From 1870 to 1930, Brazil embraced the idea of “whitening” as they believed that racial mixing would lead to a whiter population which at the time was perceived as the desirable race (Skidmore, 1975). Pelé childhood was heavily influenced by his experiences that reflected the broader racial attitudes and discourses prevalent in Brazil during his early years. Brazilian football at the time suffered from systemic racism as the sport was brought into the country in the early 1900s by wealthy white men from Europe. Black people in the country were often forbidden from playing in official matches and regularly felt compelled to straighten their hair and put white powder on their skin to fit in with the dominant race. With a sport and media dominated and controlled by whites, Pelé had to avoid being confrontational as he knew it would not take him far and would lead to consequences.

“This stance that he took was very calculated, coming from a Black man who knew how to play the game of racism in Brazil. In this sense and many others, he is a winner. A Black man that became a Brazilian symbol, a country that in many moments projected itself as white. This is based on a very sophisticated assessment that he made on how Brazil works.”
Brazilian historian Ynaê Lopes dos Santos has pointed out

“If I had to stop or shout every time I was racially abused since I started to play in Latin America, here in Brazil, in its interior, every game would have had to be stopped.”
Pelé’s response to racism in Brazilian Football

His avoidance of confrontation was shaped by “racial democracy” at the time which suggested there were harmonious interracial relations (Telles, 2015). This led Pelé to focus on professionalism and discipline to combat racial discrimination, even with the criticism from Brazil’s black movements as being inadequate in combatting deeper structural inequalities (Ana Sofia Pereira da Silva, 2014). The grip hold whiteness had on society at the time was like a “parasitic condition” which suggests that whiteness alters the behaviours and perceptions of people of colour and therefore influences their actions and perceptions of white individuals (Moss, 2021). This alteration in the thought process of white individuals signifies additional pressures and expectations on non-white individuals and in a sporting environment can affect the identity development of the athlete (Bimper & Harrison, 2011).

In Pelé’s younger years before his step into stardom, he was often deterred from playing his style of football called “Ginga”. This style of play is more than just football but is a way of life for Brazilians. This was created as a martial art of war to protect themselves from animals and colonizers, as Brazil used to be a colony of Portugal and therefore arrived in Brazil as slaves from Africa. Once slavery was abolished, Ginga was banned by law and was adopted into football to maintain its identity as a culture. In his upbringing in the sport, especially when he joined Santos FC coaches didn’t want him to play this style because of the careless and reckless nature of the style. This was less about the style of play but more rooted in white dominance, as they didn’t want him promoting a culture rooted in slavery and giving pride to the black community in Brazil.

On top of the obstacles that non-white individuals have to deal with to succeed in life, they might encounter various health concerns due to the additional stressors that are present in their lives (Malet, Mayorga-Gallo, & Williams, 2017). This complex relationship between racial identities and sports can negatively influence the psychological and physical health of an athlete, although this didn’t occur during Pelé’s athletic career, this is a noticeable factor in the lives of many athletes of colour (Bimper, 2014).

Athlete Activism

Although Pelé is mainly known for his outstanding soccer career, his impact goes a long way past the soccer field. His activism was not just speaking out but also embodying the change he wanted to see, knowing his actions have the ability to shape public perception and policy. Unlike other pioneers in athlete activism such as Muhammed Ali or Jackie Robinson, Pelé advocated for his beliefs the same as he combatted the inequalities when playing football, quiet, professional, and disciplined. He was often non-controversial and paired with his strong racial identity enhanced his trustworthiness as an athlete (Cunningham & Regan, 2012). The interconnection between an athlete’s social identity and activist role can dictate how they are perceived in their activist role (Smith et al., 2016). Pelé’s easygoing and calm demeanour allowed him to be perceived positively for his social justice advocation, which led him to be an ambassador for Brazil to the world. This allowed him to meet with many world leaders and activists such as Nelson Mandela, various US presidents and Queen Elizabeth to discuss issues not only facing his own country but the world such as racial inequality and poverty. The support for significant world figures and his perceived social justice encouraged more athletes to speak up, amplifying the impact he was making (Martin et al., 2022). His legacy was built upon not only his success in soccer but also his struggles and pressures allowed him to be a public figure and a role model. This paved the way for many to discuss many world issues such as racial inequality, poverty and mental health, but ultimately, he used his platform to inspire younger athletes to take active roles in their communities with the stage they have created for themselves to foster a culture of equality and responsibility.

Takeaway

Pelé’s life story influence transcends beyond sport and his impressive on-field achievements. Born into poverty he had to overcome racial and economic barriers from the outset and his rise to global fame was a testament to his unbelievable talent and resilience. His legacy was not limited to the records he set and the trophies he won, but the societal barriers he challenged with his measured and disciplined approach. His knowledge of the racial dynamics in Brazil allowed him to navigate them with professionalism, compassion and empathy gaining him the respect from both his critics and admirers. He remained an active voice in humanitarian efforts shining a light on social injustices around the world until his last days. Pelé is a sports icon whose impact is felt in areas all around the world, he paved the way and inspired future generations to use their platform for advocacy and societal progress. We can all learn from the life of Pelé and integrating his learnings will make sports and the world a better place.

References

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Bimper, A., & Harrison, L. (2011). Meet Me at the Crossroads: African American Athletic and Racial Identity. Quest, 63, 275 – 288. https://doi.org/10.1080/00336297.2011.10483681.

Cunningham, G., & Regan, M. (2012). Political activism, racial identity and the commercial endorsement of athletes. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 47, 657 – 669. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690211416358.

da Silva, A. P. (2014). Pelé, racial discourse and the 1958 World Cup. Soccer & Society, 15(1), 36–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/14660970.2013.854557

Malat, J., Mayorga-Gallo, S., & Williams, D. R. (2018). The effects of whiteness on the health of whites in the USA. Social science & medicine (1982), 199, 148–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.06.034

Martin, E., Kluch, Y., Intosh, A., & Kujala, S. (2022). Collegiate Athletes Engaging in Activism: Perceptions of Social Justice Causes and Support from Significant Social Agents. Sport Social Work Journal. https://doi.org/10.33043/sswj.1.1.163-182.

Moss, D. (2021). On Having Whiteness. Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association, 69, 355 – 371. https://doi.org/10.1177/00030651211008507.

Skidmore, T. (1975). Black into White: Race and Nationality in Brazilian Thought. Americas, 55, 571-574. https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822381761.

Smith, B., Bundon, A., & Best, M. (2016). Disability sport and activist identities: A qualitative study of narratives of activism among elite athletes’ with impairment. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 26, 139-148. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PSYCHSPORT.2016.07.003.

Telles, E. (2015). Demography of Race in Brazil. , 151-167. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8891-8_8.

KNPE 366: Race, sport, and physical activity