The Prime Minister of Cape Verde has announced that the country’s national stadium will be renamed after Pele following a request by FIFA.
The global football icon passed away last Thursday, December 29, 2022, following a long battle with colon cancer.
A three-time FIFA World Cup winner, Pele scored over 1000 goals in his career and is regarded by many as the greatest footballer of all time.
Addressing reporters at Pele’s funeral, FIFA president Gianni Infantino said the football governing body will ask its member associations to name a stadium after the Brazil great.
“For everyone who loves the beautiful game, this is the day we never wanted to come. The day we lost Pele,” Infantino said.
“We’re going to ask every country in the world to name one of their football stadiums with the name of Pele.”
In light of the FIFA president’s request, Cape Verde have now taken steps to rename 15,000-seater Estadio Nacional de Cabo Verde in the country’s capital after Pele.
« As a tribute and recognition to this figure that makes us all great, I manifest the intention of naming our national stadium as « Pele Stadium », in an initiative that, I believe, will be followed by several countries around the world, » Prime Minister Ulisses Correira e Silva stated in Facebook post.
« With the physical disappearance of Edson Arantes de Nascimento, King Pele, who soon became a planetary figure, an icon of the masses showing that sport has the power to unite the world, it is now our wish to pay tribute to him, » added Mr Silva in a statement that stressed the importance of Pele to Portuguese-speaking countries like Cape Verde.
« Cape Verde and Brazil have a history and culture that go hand in hand, considering they are two sister countries, linked by language and very similar identities.
« Pele was and always will be a reference in Brazil, in our Portuguese-speaking countries and in the rest of the world, being an idol that links several generations. »
Meanwhile, Pele has been laid to rest in the city of Santos.
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