Rest in peace, Pelé, the undisputed King of football

When Lionel Messi won the World Cup for Argentina earlier this month, it not only filled the last hole in his trophy cabinet, it also seemed to end the debate over who was the greatest footballer of all time.

Football fans have debated for years about whether Messi was equal to Pelé and Diego Maradona, the two long-standing candidates for one of sport’s most futile and yet most sought-after titles. By finally winning the World Cup, fans and pundits the world over ruled en masse; Messi was now the greatest.

Pelé’s death on Thursday will reopen that debate and hopefully give pause to those who have sided with the Argentine magician. Because recency bias, social media, television, and football’s unquestionable Eurocentricity have all amplified Messi feats and diminished Pelé’s.

For years now, keyboard warriors and pundits who should know better have belittled the Brazilian with series of tiresome charges. He never played for a European club (even though Brazilian football was the best in the world in Pelé’s day); hundreds of his goals came in friendly matches (too easy); he declined to lead the fight against both racism in Brazil and his country’s military dictatorship (Pelé was always non-confrontational); and he won many of his medals surrounded by other legends (too much help).