Celebs pay tributes as football legend Pele passes away

Brazilian star soccer player Pele passed away on December 29. He died due to multiple organ failure. He was 82. The football legend was undergoing treatment for colon cancer.

News of his demise was shared on his official Instagram handle. The post read, “Inspiration and love marked the journey of King Pelé, who peacefully passed away today. On his journey, Edson enchanted the world with his genius in sport, stopped a war, carried out social works all over the world and spread what he most believed to be the cure for all our problems: love.” Several celebs took to social media to pay tributes to the legend.

Abhishek Bachchan posted a long note that read, “As a child, my father introduced me to Pelé and his magic. And thus began a lifelong love for football. We had shelves filled with VHS tapes of his and the Brazilian team’s matches. I would religiously watch them with my father. A magician we’ve all been blessed to witness. A few years ago, whilst visiting India I somehow managed to get an autographed jersey of his. Rest in Peace to the greatest! @pele.” Vicky Kaushal wrote, “When Maradona died, Pele said he hopes some day he’ll ‘play ball with Maradona in the sky’. Today is that day. ”

AR Rahman, Anupam Kher, Shilpa Shetty and many others also mourned the sad demise of the legendary footballer. —TMS