GOAT Index

Two legends at a time. Thousands of votes. One ranking.

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Pelé: the case for the GOAT

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    Pelé: the case for the GOAT

    Forward · Brazil · Born 23 October 1940, Três Corações, Brazil · Died 2022 · Career 1956–1977

    Brazil's iconic No. 10, a complete forward with pace, power, two good feet and a stunning eye for goal. Spent nearly two decades at Santos before finishing his career with the New York Cosmos.

    Career highlights

    Why Pelé could be the GOAT

    Nobody else has won three World Cups. Pelé scored in a final at 17 and starred again on the great 1970 team, scoring well over a thousand goals across his career. He made football a global game, and for decades every newcomer has been measured against him.

    What fans say

    Pelé is #3 of 30 in the fan ranking, with a 5–0 head-to-head record from 82 Men's football votes. See the full Men's football GOAT ranking

    Pelé head to head

    How the ranking works. Every head-to-head vote is a result, like a game. The standings use a Bradley–Terry model, the same idea behind chess ratings: beating a highly rated legend counts for more than beating a long shot. Ratings are shown on a chess-style scale centred on 1500.

    One vote per matchup per person. If you see a pairing again in another session your new answer replaces the old one, so nobody can stuff the ballot by repeating a matchup.

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    Photo credits

      Photos come from Wikimedia Commons under the licenses listed. Each links to its source page.