Edson Arantes do Nascimento was born in Brazil’s southern state of Minas Gerais in 1940. The football legend known only as Pelé signed his first professional contract in 1956 at the age of 15 with prestigious Brazilian club, Santos FC. The following year, he made his first appearance with the Brazil National Team at age 16. During his prolific international career, Pelé won three FIFA World Cup titles (1958, 1962 and 1970) – the only player ever to do so for his country. He retired as Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 77 goals in 91 caps, and his unfathomable 1,283 career goals in all competitions will never be topped.

This vintage Brazil National Team jersey was worn by Pelé during 1965-66 international competition and signed by the global icon in-person for our consignor decades later. The fascinating background of this exceptional exemplar traced back to Brazil kit maker Athleta makes it among the top Pelé collectibles to ever come up for auction.

Provenance

The Brazilian apparel brand Athleta was formed in 1935 by the São Paulo company Santa Isabel Textile Manufacturing to specify its sportswear products – mainly socks and shirts for amateur athletes. In 1954, Athleta began supplying shirts for the Brazilian National Team. In 1958, the brand shared that contract with Umbro. Together, the two brands produced the Brazil kits through the 1970 FIFA World Cup. Athleta also manufactured kits for Pelé’s longtime club, Santos FC from the 1950s to the ‘80s. The consignor and longtime owner of this Pelé shirt worked for Athleta for nearly two decades in an important executive assistant role. Below is an excerpt from her letter of provenance (translated from Portuguese) tracing its origin back to when Pelé wore it for Brazil.

From 1964 to 1981, I worked for Athleta, the Brazilian apparel brand that produced soccer uniforms for the Brazil National Team from 1954 to 1974. In the early 1960s, I became secretary to Athleta directors José Carlos Bugarelli and Plínio Figueiredo Cunha. Pelé and other Brazilian footballers had close relationships with the Athleta directors. Players would often visit the headquarters in São Paulo and even attend work sessions in the textile factory. During one of these visits in 1966, Pelé presented the directors with his very own Brazil shirt as a gift, one that he had worn in international competition.

In the 1960’s, Athleta would hold internal bazaars of apparel items for the employees and the local community. I was responsible for organizing these bazaars, and when I came across this shirt I asked if I could have it since I was such a big fan of Pelé. The directors agreed since they valued me greatly as a worker and friend. (An item like this had much more emotional than financial value back then.)

Forty years later, on August 2, 2006, Pelé was honored with the unveiling of a bust outside the stadium of Juventus (Brazil) football club in São Paulo to celebrate one of his most famous goals [while playing for Santos against Juventus on August 2, 1959]. I asked my husband to take me to the ceremony and was able to get Pelé to autograph the shirt for me during the festivities.

Jersey Design & Specs

The long-sleeved yellow cotton shirt has the iconic CBD (Confederação Brasileira de Desportos or Brazil Sports Confederation) crest embroidered on the left chest, with Pelé's famous No. 10 on the back in blue. Tagged by Athleta within the inner collar, no size is listed but it measures to the player's standards according to MEARS. The V-neck collar and ribbed sleeve-ends in green give this shirt a classic mid-60’s style reminiscent of Pelé's peak run with Seleção. The shirt, with all-original numbers and patches, exhibits outstanding evidence of wear with a combination of soiling, sweat-staining, pilling and fraying –ideal for game-used aficionados. The front has “Do amigo [Your friend], Pelé” signed in 9/10 black marker on the chest.

Authentication & Documentation

Letter of Opinion from MEARS verifying the match shirt as authentic; consistent with Brazil jerseys from the period; and in the appropriate size for Pelé. Level of use classified as “moderate,” although physical evidence certainly merits heavy wear in our book compared to other 1960’s Pelé examples. Letter of Authenticity from PSA/DNA (AS01534) for the autograph and inscription. Letter of Provenance from Lourdes Lamego, the executive assistant at Athleta from 1964 to ’81. Copies of 1960’s documents proving her employment tenure with Malharia Santa Isabel [parent company of Athleta] during that period.