What happened during legendary Pele's first visit to India?

The late Brazilian visited India to play against Bagan.

One of the best football players to ever set foot on a field is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known by his nickname, Pele.

Pele’s legacy is unquestionable because he guided Brazil to three FIFA World Cups (1958, 1962, and 1970). During his first of three trips to India in 1977.

“Unfortunately, you never made it to the Olympic Games, but nevertheless, you are an Olympic athlete because you have been living the Olympic values in all your career,” Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee, once said about the Brazilian.

In order to play against Indian giants Mohun Bagan in a friendly match at the Eden Gardens on September 25, Pele, who played for the renowned New York Cosmos, travelled to Kolkata, the birthplace of the beautiful game in India. The visit was a component of a two-week goodwill tour of Asia that also included visits to China and Japan.

“Lakhs of people gathered outside the Dum Dum Airport to greet the Brazilian legend. There were also teeming crowds outside his hotel in central Kolkata, waiting to catch a glimpse of the only man who had won three World Cups for his team,” football historian Novy Kapadia recounted the incident in his book, Barefoot to Boots.

When Pele graced the pitch at Eden Gardens in India

Approximately 80,000 people flocked to Eden Gardens to watch the 37-year-old Pele and his New York Cosmos team, which included Italian Giorgio Chinaglia and Brazilian World Cup winner Carlos Alberto. To control the applauding fans, over 35,000 police officers were stationed.

Pele made sure to give the Indian supporters what they had been waiting for, even though the ground was nearly impassable due to heavy rains. Despite playing only 30 minutes, the Brazilian dazzled the crowd with his elegant movement against a hard-charging Mohun Bagan club led by the late, great PK Banerjee.

Mohun Bagan was also up to the challenge after bringing in top players from city rivals East Bengal the previous season, including Subhas Bhowmick, Shyam Thapa, and Surajit Sengupta. Surprisingly, they seized the lead in the 18th and 33rd minutes. However, the game finished in a 2-2 draw after the visitors equalised on both occasions.

Mohammed Habib of Mohun Bagan was the game’s most notable player, and Pele made sure to personally thank the striker for his excellent performances.

It was Pele’s career’s penultimate game. He played his last game a week after spending just one day in Kolkata.

The legendary Brazilian returned to India in 2015, this time as a chief guest at the Subroto Cup, a national inter-school tournament.

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