Lula has – obviously – made a place for Pelé’s funeral in his agenda as a president who has just returned to power. Invested Sunday at the head of Brazil, the figure of the left moved to Santos to pay tribute to “O Rei” this Tuesday. He gathered in front of the coffin of the football legend during the last of the 24 hours of the funeral wake organized on the lawn of the Vila Belmiro stadium.
At around 9 a.m. (local time, 1 p.m. in France), Lula got out of his helicopter to head towards the center of the lawn of the Santos enclosure. The security system had been reinforced around the stadium to secure the arrival of the new president.
The one who was elected for the third time at the head of the country succeeded thousands of fans and actors from the world of football who came to say goodbye to Pelé. Gianni Infantino, in particular, gathered near the coffin and announced to the media that he wanted to “ask all the countries in the world to baptize one of their stadiums in the name of Pelé”.
“Few Brazilians have carried the name of our country so high”
As soon as the death of the icon of the Seleçao was announced, the Brazilian president paid him a long tribute. “Few Brazilians have carried the name of our country as high as he wrote on Twitter. As different as the Portuguese language is, foreigners from all corners of the planet quickly found a way to pronounce the magic word: Skin. »
Aged 77, Lula was able to benefit from the exploits of the “King”: “I had the privilege that young Brazilians did not have: I saw Pelé play, live, at Pacaembu and Morumbi. Play, no. I saw Pelé put on a show. Because when he took the ball, he always did something special, which often ended in a goal. »
Despite his love for Corinthians, Santos’ rival club, sometimes resented Pelé for having heckled his favorite team, but the admiration and “the passion to see him play with the number 10 shirt of the national team” have quickly took precedence over anger.
At the end of the vigil, a funeral procession will cross Santos to the cemetery which will welcome the King. The final ceremony will be held privately by the family.