But while he was named FIFA's player of the century, Pele never won the Ballon d'Or as a player. When he was strutting his stuff, 'The King' was never eligible for the coveted award because he did not play in Europe and he was not from the continent.
Incredibly unjustly, Pele never won the Ballon d'Or - a truth completely decided by geography. Until 1995, the most prestigious individual honour was exclusively granted to European players. On the Ballon d'Or's 60th anniversary, however, France Football released a re-evaluation of the awards presented before 1995.
And Pele was voted as the winner for seven of those awards, however, they were unofficial achievements which meant that the Brazilian icon still doesn't have a Ballon d'Or to his name.
PELE has lifted the biggest awards that football has to offer - but he never got his hands on the Ballon d'Or. The Brazilian icon has sadly passed away, but he will be remembered forever. Pele has always been remembered for his phenomenal goal scoring talent alongside winning THREE World Cups.
Unfortunately, Pele and Diego Maradona were both ineligible for the award and this list because the Ballon d'Or only opened to non-European players in 1995. Pele had long since retired, and Maradona was nearing the end of his career in Argentina.
This means that once the club and the international stages come together and the calculators are whipped out, across their careers, Ronaldo has scored more than Messi and Pele. He has notched 819 times, with Pele sat on 786 and Messi bagging on 793 occasions.
In his career, the Argentine has scored 806 goals with 357 assists in 1,027 appearances, while the Brazilian has scored 756 goals with 367 assists in 819 appearances. That said, it is safe to say that Messi has more goals than Pele.
Despite being regarded as 'the greatest' by Fifa, the world governing body for football, Pele could not win the Ballon d'Or because he was not eligible. Since its initial inception in 1956, the Ballon d'Or was only open to European players who plied their trade in Europe.
The Ballon d'Or award started in 1956, and Stanley Matthews became the first player to win the award. It was open to the players who were from Europe only. Thus, soccer players from other continents were ineligible for the award, including the soccer greats Maradona and Pele.
Brazilian football icon Pele (1940-2022) is the only player in the history of the game to win three World Cups, achievements that helped earn him legendary status. Pele, among football's most prolific scorers, spent nearly two decades mesmerising fans and dazzling opponents with his skills.
Here's How Pele Has Seven Ballon d'Ors, Same as Lionel Messi, Despite Never Actually Winning One. The world of soccer has witnessed many legends over the years.
They called him 'The King', and his face is one of the most recognisable in world football. The man in question is, of course, Pele, who was once named by FIFA as the greatest player of the 20th century.
Pelé began playing for Santos at age 15 and the Brazil national team at 16. During his international career, he won three FIFA World Cups: 1958, 1962 and 1970, the only player to do so and the youngest player to win a World Cup (17). He was nicknamed O Rei (The King) following the 1958 tournament.
Pelé: King of the World Cup
Pelé managed to raise three World Cup trophies with Brazil, finishing with victories in Sweden 1958, Chile 1962 and Mexico 1970. Maradona won one World Cup throughout his career, although behind him there is a memorable performance in Mexico 1986.
Pele given honorary Ballon d'Or in 2014
Pele may not have received a Ballon d'Or in his career but he finally got his hands on one in 2014. At the 2013 ceremony in Paris, the legendary Brazilian was awarded the FIFA Ballon d'or Prix d'Honneur, which recognised his achievements in the sport.
In 2013, Brazilian forward Pelé was given an honorary Ballon d'Or, having won three FIFA World Cups with Brazil but never an individual award from FIFA, as during his playing career only Europe-based players were eligible to win the original Ballon d'Or.
Precisely how many time Pele hit the net is a matter of debate, with most statisticians agreeing the number is between 1,281 and 1,283. FIFA put his overall total at more than 1,200 - over 1,000 of which came for his first club, Santos. Most of the others came for the New York Cosmos and Brazil.
A total of 471 players have been in the winning team in the World Cup. Brazil's Pelé is the only one to have won three times, while another 20 have won twice. Only players from Argentina, Brazil and Italy have won the world Cup more than once.
According to FIFA, they currently look like this: Pele – 77 goals. Neymar – 77 goals* Ronaldo – 62 goals.
Even before their time, many regarded Pele as the ultimate football king. But in Maradona's eyes, none of these men matched up to the bar set by Alfredo Di Stéfano. In a 2019 interview with TYC Sports as per AS, the Argentinian revealed why he held his countryman in such high regard.
Pele won more titles than Maradona during his playing career. As well as three World Cups, the Brazilian won the Copa Libertadores twice with Santos, along with two Intercontinental Cups and one Intercontinental Supercup. He won six Brasileiro titles with Santos and the NASL Bowl with New York Cosmos.