Pele proud of black players' success

Pele said his biggest contribution to soccer was not confined to the field but in also helping to enable black players attain the status they have today. Pele, 65, was speaking after the opening of the new Aspire Academy sports dome, the largest of its...

Pele said his biggest contribution to soccer was not confined to the field but in also helping to enable black players attain the status they have today.

Pele, 65, was speaking after the opening of the new Aspire Academy sports dome, the largest of its kind in the world.

He recalled: "As a 17-year-old at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden I noticed that only my team, Brazil, had black players. I was watching teams like France and Sweden training nearby and they all had white players.

"But today, I can see black players in all these national teams and I believe I have contributed a lot to bringing about this change."

He added: "Football is a great game, it brings together people of different hues. It's a family, but my contribution is also social. FIFA has more affiliates than UNESCO and I feel proud to be part of it."

Pele also said that he he felt there were few places where racism still existed in soccer.

He said: "I know in some places in Italy there are some problems. But FIFA will continue to take strong measures to wipe this out."

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