Cold Open

It’s November 19th, 1969, at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

His whistle gripped in his hands, referee Marco Amaro de Lima splashes across the rain-soaked field. There are 70,000 soccer fans packed into the stadium. The local team, Vasco da Gama, is playing Santos. But there’s only one man they’ve really come to see: Pelé.

29-year-old Pelé is already a Brazilian national hero and has scored 999 goals in his career so far—more than any other player in documented soccer history.

So today, everyone in the Maracanã hopes to see him make it to 1,000.

But the game isn’t living up to the occasion. A heavy downpour has made the field slick and treacherous. The ball skids more than rolls over the wet grass, and the white field markings are dissolving in the rain; even the great Pelé has struggled to keep his footing. So thanks to these tough conditions, the game has entered a lull. The players are slowing, which gives Marco a welcome chance to catch his breath.

Or so he thought. Because out of nowhere, Pelé makes a run past three defenders and receives a pass that puts him clear on goal. He darts forward, the ball seemingly glued to his feet. Marco sprints to keep up with the action.

And as Pelé closes in on goal, a defender makes a panicked tackle from behind. Pelé tumbles to the ground, the ball spinning away from the wet grass. It’s a clear foul, and Marco doesn’t think twice.

He raises his arm and blows his whistle. Penalty.

Wasting no time, Pelé retrieves the ball and places it on the penalty spot. He wipes his face, takes three steps back, and settles himself. As the rain continues, the crowd falls silent, aware that the next few seconds may make soccer history.

For the Brazilian people, this will be a moment of national joy. But for Pelé, the chance to score his 1,000th goal will be something simpler and more meaningful—proof that even dreams born in the deepest of poverty can come true. Rising from the streets of Brazil to the pinnacle of his sport, Pelé’s status as a soccer icon will be confirmed with the milestone goal he scores on November 19th, 1969.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham, and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is November 19th, 1969: Pelé's 1,000th Career Goal.

Act One

It’s 1947 in Bauru, Brazil, nearly three decades before Pelé's goal-scoring milestone.

30-year-old soccer player Dondinho adjusts the bandage on his aching knee before jogging out onto the field. Despite the pain, he’s determined to prove he can still play, and he hopes that the discomfort will ease once he gets warmed up.

But it doesn’t. By the time the whistle blows at the end of the game, Dondinho's knee is throbbing. He trudges off the field, almost dragging his leg through the dirt. But he won’t get a chance to ease his pain with a hot shower. Because waiting for him on the sideline is his eldest son, seven-year-old Edson, known to all as Pelé. The young boy has a battered ball under his arm and a face alight with anticipation.

In postwar Brazil, being a professional soccer player isn’t easy. The wages are low, and even a top player, just one bad injury away from the end of their career. Dondinho's lingering knee problem means he can play only when the pain allows. So to make ends meet, he has to take odd jobs around town.

But that doesn’t stop his two sons from wanting to follow in his footsteps. Soccer is more than a sport in Brazil; it’s a national obsession. And Pelé and his brother don’t let the family’s poverty stop them from joining in.

For them, every spare moment is consumed with the game. They can’t afford a real ball of their own, so the brothers use old socks stuffed with rags. But even with such basic equipment, Pelé still stands out. Although he’s small for his age, he has fast feet and excellent control and is already building a reputation as one of the best young players in town. So when Pelé plays on the street, neighbors pause to watch him dribble past older boys twice his size, his balance never faltering.

Dondinho has recognized Pelé's raw talent and has decided to take charge of his son’s training himself. So, he ignores his aching knee and stays on the field to kick the ball around with his son until the daylight fades.

They practice like this night after night. Dondinho teaching Pelé to head cleanly, to strike with either foot, and to never let his emotions get the better of him on the field.

With Dondinho’s expert coaching, at the age of 13, Pelé joins a local junior team. He’s still small, but that doesn’t hold him back. Pelé scores in almost every game he plays, and word of his talent starts to spread beyond his hometown. His name appears in regional newspapers next to headlines that hail him as “the new star from Bauru.”

So soon, Pelé's brilliance catches the eye of Brazil’s top clubs. The one that makes the best offer is fast-rising Santos F.C. Over the past few years, Santos has transformed its fortunes on the field by investing in young, skillful players who grew up playing soccer on the streets. In Pelé, the Santos manager thinks he’s found the missing piece that might turn his team into championship winners.

But though the offer Santos made to Pelé fills Dondinho with pride, it also makes him nervous. By now, he’s retired from the sport, so knows better than most how unforgiving soccer can be. Still, Dondinho can’t help but wonder what kind of career he might have had, were it not for his knee injury. Perhaps Pelé can live the dream that eluded him.

So soon, Dondinho's mind is set. 15-year-old Pelé will join Santos.

And soon Pelé arrives at the club as a nervous teenager. Some there doubt whether a boy from a small town can handle the pressure. But then, they see him play.

Within months, Pelé is a fixture in the Santos starting lineup. He seems to score easily against even the country’s best defenders, and soon the national press takes notice. Reporters hail him as “the next great hope of Brazilian soccer.” And in his first full season, Pelé scores 41 goals in 38 games. In his second season, while still just a teenager, he smashes record after record, scoring 66 goals in 46 games, including 11 hat-tricks.

But for the barefoot boy from Bauru, success in Brazil isn’t enough. If Pelé is to fulfill his destiny and make the dreams of his father come true, he will need to shine on soccer’s biggest stage of all: the World Cup.

Act Two

It’s July 19th, 1966, at Goodison Park, a soccer stadium in Liverpool, England, ten years after Pelé's professional debut for Santos.

Now 25 years old, Pelé kneels down to tie his laces and take a breath to steady himself. Then, he straightens, walks to the center of the field, and waits for the kickoff of Brazil’s game against Portugal. Pelé is playing in the World Cup, soccer’s most prestigious tournament. Held every four years, this time it’s being hosted in England, and the atmosphere at Goodison Park is electric.

By now, Pelé is the most famous soccer player in the world. Eight years ago, when he was still just 17, he scored twice in the World Cup final to help Brazil win their first-ever championship. Four years later, he was part of the squad that retained the trophy. And after that second World Cup victory, opponents concluded that to stop Brazil, they had to stop Pelé. Coaches studied his every move and developed special strategies to contain him. And they didn’t always play fair.

But by now, Pelé is used to defenders bending the rules to stop him. Still, the 1966 World Cup has brought the worst treatment yet. Whenever he has the ball at his feet, his opponents tackle him with overt aggression, and often go unpunished by referees. But even when he doesn’t have the ball, Pelé isn’t safe. Defenders never seem to miss an opportunity to rough him up in their attempts to stop him from playing.

The strategy is cynical, but it also seems to be working. Brazil has played two games so far in the tournament. They managed to beat Bulgaria, but victory came at a cost—Pelé was so badly hurt by the Bulgarian defenders that he couldn’t play in the next game against Hungary, in which Brazil went down in a damaging defeat. Now, unless Brazil can beat Portugal, Pelé's most recent World Cup will be over.

By halftime, though, Brazil is losing once again, and Pelé's legs are so bruised that he can hardly move. He still goes back on the field, determined to help his country, but midway through the second half, another heavy challenge sends Pelé crashing to the ground. Pain shoots down his leg. But substitutions are not allowed, so Pelé has no choice except to pull himself upright and limp through the rest of the game. But with their star striker injured, Brazil can’t turn the score around. The game ends in a 3-1 defeat for Brazil, ending the country’s hopes of defending its title. Afterward, despondently nursing his injuries in the locker room, Pelé vows never to play in the World Cup again.

A few days later, the Brazil team leaves England to fly back home. They fear a hostile reception from disappointed fans. But instead, they’re welcomed as heroes. Crowds wait at the airport, waving flags and singing Pelé's name. Despite their disappointment about losing the World Cup, Brazil fans still call him “the King.” In their faith softens Pelé's resolve and makes him reconsider his decision to boycott the World Cup.

But whether he decides to play in it or not, the next World Cup isn’t for another four years. In the meantime, there are plenty of games to play for Santos. And everywhere the team goes, stadiums are sold out, with fans of all teams eager to watch Pelé weave his magic.

And by 1969, Pelé has netted well over 900 goals. Newspapers start printing his running total, and the ever-increasing number becomes a story of its own. But as he gets closer to goal number 1,000, the pressure mounts. Opponents mark him even more tightly. And every missed chance ratchets up the tension a little more.

Then on November 14th, 1969, Pelé scores goal number 999. The crowd erupts, hoping that he will hit the net again. But the game takes an unexpected turn. When the Santos goalkeeper goes down injured and has to leave the field, the team manager decides the next best option to tend goal is his star forward, Pelé. So, Pelé takes his place between the goalposts, shooting a wry grin to the disappointed fans in the stands behind him. There won’t be goal number 1000 today.

But Pelé won’t keep the soccer world waiting much longer. Five days after his 999th goal, Santos will play another game, against Vasco da Gama in Rio de Janeiro. The stadium will be a sell-out, and all across Brazil, millions more will tune in to listen on the radio. One man’s sporting milestone is about to become a shared moment of national history.

Act Three

It’s November 19th, 1969, at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, five days after Pelé scored his 999th goal.

Every eye is fixed on Pelé as he places the ball on the penalty spot and steps back. It’s the 78th minute of the game between Santos and Vasco da Gama. And Pelé has his chance to make history.

All he has to do is beat the goalkeeper from twelve yards. Behind the net, photographers jostle for space as Pelé takes a deep breath.

The referee then blows his whistle. And Pelé takes three quick strides forward, then pauses for a split second—just enough to deceive the goalkeeper. He then swings his foot, and the ball flies low toward the left corner of the goal. The goalkeeper dives after it, but the ball is out of his reach. The net ripples, and Pelé has done it. He has scored his 1,000th goal.

As the stadium erupts around him, Pelé races past the goalkeeper to collect the ball from the back of the net. He kisses it and raises it to the sky like a trophy. And then within moments, he’s surrounded by fans who have rushed onto the field in a wave of euphoria.

Among them is a reporter who thrusts a microphone under Pelé’s nose and asks for his reaction. His voice shaking, Pelé dedicates the goal to the millions of Brazilian children growing up in poverty. He may now be a soccer legend, but he hasn’t forgotten where he came from.

Pelé’s 1,000th goal makes headlines around the world. But he isn’t finished just yet. Pelé’s goal-scoring exploits will continue and include the opening goal for Brazil in its triumph at the World Cup final in 1970. Pelé will finally retire at the age of 36, after a glamorous stint in the United States with the New York Cosmos.

But Pelé began by kicking a rag-stuffed ball on Brazil’s backstreets; history will remember him as the greatest soccer player of all time, playing 1,363 games and scoring 1,279 goals—none of which was more eagerly anticipated or celebrated than the 1,000th goal of his career, one that thumped into the net at the Maracanã Stadium on November 19th, 1969.

Outro

Next on History Daily. November 20th, 1820. 2,000 miles off the coast of South America, an American ship is attacked and sunk by an enormous whale.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Mollie Baack.

Music by Thrumm.

This episode is written and researched by Olivia Jordan.

Edited by Scott Reeves.

Managing producer, Emily Burke.

Executive Producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.