Pele’s Family Gather At His Hospital Bedside For Christmas

Family members spent Christmas morning on Sunday with Pele at the Sao Paulo hospital where the legendary footballer is fighting worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems, according to a social media post by his daughter.

Fans of the player, considered by many the greatest of all time, have been expressing hope for his recovery since he was hospitalised in São Paulo in late November.

Shortly after midnight, on Christmas Day, Pele’s daughter Kely Nascimento posted a picture of the footballer’s wife, Marcia Aoki, and other family members gathered at the Albert Einstein Hospital where he is being treated. Pele was however not visible in the image.

“Almost all of us. Merry Christmas. Gratitude, love, union, family. The essence of Christmas. We thank you all for all the love and light you send us,” Kely wrote.

On Wednesday, the hospital announced Pele’s colon cancer was showing “progression” and he needed “more extensive care to treat kidney and heart failure.”

Earlier that day, his daughters had announced he would not be home for Christmas.

That same day, Kely shared a photo of herself hugging her 82-year-old father in the hospital with the caption “one more night together.”

Pele, born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, has received several messages of support since his hospitalization, including one from the French star Kylian Mbappe, who called on followers to “pray for the King.”

Pele took the 1958 World Cup by storm when he was 17 years old, netting a hat trick in the semifinals and two more goals in the final, catapulting his own career and launching the soccer dynasty of the Brazilian national team.

He is the only player in history to have won three World Cups (1958, 1962 and 1970).