His daughter, Kely Nascimento, said in an Instagram post on Wednesday that her father would spend the holidays in the hospital.
Sports
Pele: Brazilian icon to spend Christmas in hospital as cancer advances
Pele will remain in hospital over Christmas.
The hospital treating him said that his cancer had advanced and that he requires care for renal and cardiac dysfunctions.
The Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein said Pele “presents cancer disease progression and requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions”
Pele, 82, is being treated in the general ward but “requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions,” the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo announced.
The all-time great was hospitalized in Sao Paulo on November 29 for what his medical team called a re-evaluation of his chemotherapy treatments, which he has been receiving since having surgery to remove a colon tumor in September 2021.
“Our Christmas at home has been suspended. We decided with the doctors that, for various reasons, it would be better for us to stay here with all the care that this new family at Einstein gives us,” she said.
“We, as always, thank you for all the love you show us here in Brazil as well as around the world! Your love for him and your stories and prayers are a HUGE comfort because we know we are not alone.”
Following Argentina’s win in Sunday’s World Cup final, Pele posted a picture on social media of their team lifting the trophy, and hailed performances from captain Lionel Messi, France’s Kylian Mbappe, and surprise semi-finalists Morocco.
“Congratulations Argentina! Certainly Diego is smiling now,” he wrote, in reference to another Argentine soccer great, the late Diego Maradona.
“Today, football continues to tell its story, as always, in an enthralling way,” Pelé wrote on Instagram. “Messi winning his first World Cup, as his trajectory deserved. My dear friend, [Kylian] Mbappé, scoring four goals in a final. What a gift it was to watch this spectacle to the future of our sport.”
Pelé also congratulated the Morocco soccer team for making history reaching the semifinals and finishing in fourth place. “It’s great to see Africa shine,” he wrote.