SAO PAULO, Brazil – In a striking tribute to the late football legend Pele, the Portuguese-language Michaelis dictionary has incorporated “pelé” as an adjective in its latest online edition.
The move signifies a noteworthy moment in the recognition of the football icon’s enduring impact on global culture, particularly within his home country, Brazil.
For the world’s 265 million Portuguese speakers, the word “pele” will now officially denote something or someone exceptional, incomparable, or unique — a connotation it has informally held in Brazil for some time.
The inclusion of the term is the culmination of a spirited campaign by the Pelé Foundation, the sports channel SporTV, and the Sao Paulo football club Santos. The campaign successfully amassed over 125,000 signatures, underscoring the enduring love and respect for the football titan.
“The expression already used to refer to someone who is the best at what they do has been eternalized on the pages of the dictionary!” the Pele Foundation declared on Thursday, April 27, 2023, clearly delighted with the achievement.
Under the new entry, the word is defined as “exceptional, incomparable, unique” — the very qualities associated with the “King” of football himself, who passed away last December at 82.
In keeping with the educative nature of a dictionary, the Michaelis online edition also offers helpful examples of the term’s usage, such as: “He is the pele of basketball… She is the pele of Brazilian drama.”
At present, the term is available only in the Michaelis online version, but plans are underway to include it in future printed editions.
Pele, hailed universally as one of the greatest footballers of all time, scored a staggering 1,281 goals during his more than two-decade long career.
He played with Santos from 1956 to 1974, the Brazilian national team, and the New York Cosmos from 1975 to 1977.
Now, his legacy has been indelibly etched into the very language of his homeland, ensuring that the name “Pele” will continue to signify excellence for generations to come.
