Mashable: Pele was the only player to take home a record-setting three World Cup victories.

The renowned Brazilian soccer player Pelé, who defied the odds to become one of the century's most charismatic sports icons, passed away on Thursday at the age of 82. He had been receiving treatment for colon cancer since 2021.

He died due to multiple organ failure brought on by cancer, according to the Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paulo, where he had been receiving treatment for the last month.

Taking it to Instagram, his daughter Kely Nascimento wrote, “All that we are is thanks to you. We love you endlessly. Rest in peace.”

Confirming the news, his agent, Joe Fraga said, “The king has passed.”

Pelé, the undisputed king of "the beautiful game," was the only player to take home a record-setting three World Cup victories. He is recognized as one of soccer's all-time greats and has spent nearly two decades as the sport's leading scorer with Brazilian club Santos and the Brazil national team captivating fans and mesmerizing rivals.

A person who embodied Brazil's dominance in the "beautiful game" received tributes from all spheres of sport, politics, and popular culture.

Sharing a series of pictures, current Brazilian star player Neymar wrote a long message following the soccer great’s death. He wrote, “Before Pelé, ’10′ was just a number. I’ve read this phrase somewhere, at some point in my life. But this sentence, beautiful, is incomplete. I would say before Pelé football was just a sport. Pelé has changed it all. He turned football into art, into entertainment He gave voice to the poor, to the blacks and especially: He gave visibility to Brazil. Soccer and Brazil have raised their status thanks to the King! He's gone but his magic remains. Pelé is FOREVER!!”

Famous players including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and many others also paid their tributes to the soccer great.

The king of football has left us but his legacy will never be forgotten.
RIP KING … pic.twitter.com/F55PrcM2Ud

— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) December 29, 2022
Gracias por todo lo que le diste al mundo del fútbol. Rip legend  #Pelé pic.twitter.com/ttMaTnObfF

— Gabriel Batistuta (@GBatistutaOK) December 29, 2022
Que tristeza! 29/12 a partir de hoje se tornará sempre uma data triste. A gente cresce em Santos escutando todos os dias falarem sobre você, o quão bom você era jogando e como pessoa, graças a Deus eu tive a oportunidade de te conhecer pessoalmente… pic.twitter.com/PxB6W55Dsm

— Rodrygo Goes (@RodrygoGoes) December 29, 2022

“The game. The king. Eternity," tweeted French President Emmanuel Macron.

Le Jeu. Le Roi. L’Éternité.
O Jogo. O Rei. A Eternidade. pic.twitter.com/ZjeaF7zIGx

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) December 29, 2022
U.S. President Joe Biden issued a statement saying, “For a sport that brings the world together like no other, Pelé’s rise from humble beginnings to soccer legend is a story of what is possible. Today, Jill and I’s thoughts are with his family and all those who loved him."

It may be mentioned that Pelé announced his retirement from the sport on October 1, 1977, nearly two years after signing with the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League. His final exhibition was particularly memorable because it featured the Cosmos and Santos in front of a record 77,000 soccer fans in New Jersey.