In His Own Words, How Brazil Soccer Legend Pele Got His Nickname

• The football world was thrown into mourning on Thursday evening after the passing of Pele
• The football icon was hospitalised for weeks and breathed his last surrounded by his family
• The popular nickname Pele has its own interesting origins which he once explained himself

Three-time World Cup winner Pele passed away on Thursday night surrounded by his family.

The legend had been hospitalised for complications developing from colon cancer, and had reportedly not been responding to treatment in the days before his passing.

Pele, whose real name was Edson Arantes do Nascimento, played throughout his career with the nickname he made popular - even though he admittedly did not like it at first.

The Brazilian legend admitted to being proud of his name Edson, which was inspired by lightbulb inventor Thomas Edison. He said his father named him so due to the lights coming on as he was born.

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Pele in his own words

Nine years ago, in an interview with Sky Sports, he spoke about his real name, the nickname and surprisingly revealed the name he was called by those close to him.

''In Portuguese, when you kick the ball with the foot we say 'Pe', and maybe I made some mistakes, I don't know, but my teammates started to say Pe-lé, more and more. I didn't like it because my name was Edson, but it started and here I am,'' he said.

''Anyway, my family and the ones [who] are close to me still call me Dico. That's what they call me at home,'' he added as paraphrased by CBS Sports.

Spanish newspaper Marca reported another account of how he got the name, claiming it was an adaptation of his father's teammate, goalkeeper Bile.

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Pele played in goal as a child, to give opponents the advantage of him not playing as a striker.

Pele's daughter pays dad tribute

Sports Brief earlier reported that the icon's daughter, Kely Nascimento, who has been providing updates on his father's health, announced Pele's death on Instagram.

She uploaded a photo of the family holding hands on the football legend's bed, with a caption reading: 'Everything we are is thanks to you. We love you infinitely. Rest in peace'.

The Santos legend died surrounded by his family, after days of not responding to treatment and the family asking for the world's prayers.