Late Brazilian striker Pele is often considered the greatest soccer player of all time. If you want to know why, it is enough to check out the long list of his soccer achievements that will probably never be matched. Here are some of the most impressive ones.
1,279 Scored Goals
Part of Pele’s greatness is that he scored goals at will. He is officially recognized by Guinness World Records for scoring 1,279 goals in 1,363 games. It is important to note that this includes goals scored in friendly and exhibition matches, which are not counted by the soccer governing body, FIFA. Pele himself claimed that his goal tally is bigger and stands at 1,283 goals.
3 World Cup Trophies
Pele is the only player in the history of soccer with three World Cup trophies on his resume. He won his first World Cup with Brazil’s national team in 1958 as a 17-year-old and went on to repeat the feat in 1962 and 1970. Not a single active player has more than one, and no player born after 1976 has two.
92 Career Hat-Tricks
Pele is also a record holder for most hat-tricks—scoring three goals in a single game—with 92. This achievement of his is officially recognized by FIFA because all of the 92 hat-tricks came in official club and international matches. His closest challengers, Cristiano Ronaldo with 65 and Lionel Messi with 57, are still active but approaching the end of their respective careers and are unlikely to even come close to Pele.