We only ride on the Second Avenue subway line!
Quite possibly the greatest soccer player of all time, Brazilian-born Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as Pelé, signed with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (NASL) for what was then a record three-year $2.8 million contract. It was his second professional team.
Over the course of his Cosmos career, Pelé helped set numerous attendance and broadcast records. In his final season, 1977, Pelé helped lead the Cosmos to a league title.
Pelé had previously played for the Brazilian club team Santos from 1956 to 1974, before he retired from the Brazilian League. He had also helped Brazil to win three world cups in 1958, 1962, and 1970.
To further justify putting quotes around his “retirement”, Pelé’ who was very much past his prime playing days, but still well within his prime marketing days, signed with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (NASL). It was a huge signing for the league, which at the time was struggling to build a wider audience in the U.S.. Although a love of the game along with the prospect of playing in the U.S. was huge for Pelé, the money he earned in the signing was also a huge factor in his returning to the sport. With a three-year $2.8 million contract, Pelé at the time was the highest-paid athlete in the world. For the Cosmos, it was well worth the money.
No. 10 Pelé in front with the New York Cosmos. Just behind him is Italian player Giorgio Chinaglia. (Robert Riger/Getty Images).
Back to SilverMedals Referencepedia...
“You spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time.” — Jim Bouton (1939 – 2019) It was sad news to learn of the passing of Jim Bouton yesterday, one of the most fascinating and notorious sports figures in U.S. baseball…read more
The world’s second-ranked Google search queries of 2018.
Geri Reischl may not be a household name but she occupies a rather unique place in American pop-cultural history. Some may know her for her singing. Some may know her for her toy ads in the late 60s and early 70s. There are many French Canadians who may remember Reischl from when she toured with singer René Simard. But the…read more
Madison Square Garden is New York’s premier indoor arena and venue. It is the home of the the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Liberty (WNBA), and the New York Rangers (NHL) sports franchises. It is the main venue for the Men’s Big East Basketball Conference Tournament, the National Invitational Tournament Final and many other sporting and boxing events….read more
German athlete Luz Long is quite possibly the ultimate Silver Medalist. He is the athlete who finished second to American Jesse Owens in the long jump competition at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, but more than that, he made sports history with a gesture that stunned many who witnessed it. After their competition, Long, a white man, enthusiastically embraced Owens, a black…read more
Thomas William Burgess got up on the morning of September 5, 1911, ready to make history. Having already tried and failed 15 times before, he knew what he was up against. He wanted to become the second person to swim across the English Channel, and the first to do so since 1875 when Captain Matthew Webb breast-stroked his way across the…read more
