On 23 October 1940, Edson Arantes do Nascimento was born in Três Corações, Brazil. The world came to know him as Pelé. This year he would have turned 86. He passed away on 29 December 2022, yet the image of him with the number 10 on his back has never faded. To mark his birthday, we tell his story through the shirts he wore.

The white of Santos

It all began at Santos. Pelé signed a professional contract in June 1956, when he was just 15. On his debut in September of that year, he scored the first goal of his career in a 7-1 win.

Santos, whose fans call the club “Peixe” (the fish), traditionally play in white. In that shirt Pelé scored 643 goals in 659 matches. He also won two Copa Libertadores titles and two Intercontinental Cups, in 1962 and 1963.

How Brazil's yellow was born

Until 1950, Brazil played in a white shirt with a blue collar. After the painful defeat at the Maracanã, many said those colours did not represent the country. A newspaper then launched a competition for a kit in the colours of the national flag.

The winner was 19-year-old Aldyr Garcia Schlee from Pelotas. He proposed a yellow shirt with green trim and blue shorts. The new kit was worn for the first time in March 1954, in a match against Chile.

1958: a number 10 that came by chance

At the World Cup in Sweden, Pelé was 17. According to the most widely told version, the Brazilian federation did not submit squad numbers for its players, so FIFA assigned them. That is how the 10 fell to Pelé.

The Brazilian federation has never given an official explanation, and Pelé himself told different stories over the years. However it happened, the number became his forever.

The final in blue

There was a problem before the final against Sweden. Both teams wore yellow. Brazil had not brought a second kit, so the team officials bought blue shirts and sewed the federation's badge onto them.

Brazil won 5-2 and Pelé scored twice. He is still the youngest goalscorer in a World Cup final. Ever since, blue has been the Seleção's second kit.

Mexico 1970: yellow on colour TV

The 1970 World Cup was the first that many viewers watched in colour, and Brazil's yellow became legendary. After the match against England, Pelé and Bobby Moore swapped shirts in a moment that went down in history.

In the final against Italy (4-1), Pelé opened the scoring with a header and set up Carlos Alberto's goal. He won the Golden Ball, and Brazil kept the Jules Rimet Trophy for good.

New York Cosmos: back in white

In June 1975, Pelé signed for the New York Cosmos. Until then the team had played in green. With his arrival, the home kit became white like that of Santos, and green became the away kit.

In 1977 the Cosmos won the Soccer Bowl. In his farewell match, against Santos, Pelé played one half for each team.

For collectors

Pelé's shirts are among the most sought-after items on the memorabilia market. In July 2026, Sotheby's sold the number 10 shirt from the 1958 final for 4.9 million dollars. Pelé had given it to his roommate, Dida. It is the second most expensive football shirt ever sold.

For most of us, a retro Brazil shirt from 1958 or 1970 is the finest way to keep this story alive.

Happy birthday, King.

See our collectible jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Pelé with Brazil in a friendly against Malmö, 8 May 1960 – AFP/SCANPIX, Wikimedia Commons, public domain.