Public pays final respects to football legend Pele

Mourners on Tuesday paid their respects to Brazilian soccer great Pelé before his burial later in the day. They filed past his coffin at the Vila Belmiro Stadium in Santos.

Later in the day, a Catholic Mass is expected to be celebrated at the stadium before his casket is ushered through the streets of Santos to a nearby cemetery.

Brazil’s newly inaugurated President LuizInácio Lula da Silva, is expected to come to Vila Belmiro shortly before the coffin is removed from the stadium. The soccer great died on Thursday at age 82 after a battle with cancer. He was the only player ever to win three World Cups.Pelé led Brazil to World Cup titles in 1958, 1962 and 1970 and remains one of the team’s all-time leading scorers with 77 goals.