CELEBRITY
Mbappe, Lineker, prominent football figures pay Pele tributes after movement to ‘end-of-life’ care
Prominent members of the footballing world have flocked to send tributes to Pele after the Brazil legend was moved to palliative care.
Pele, 82, is receiving end-of-life care in hospital in Sao Paulo after he stopped responding to chemotherapy treatment for his bowel cancer. He was admitted to the Albert Einstein Hospital on Tuesday after suffering with symptoms of ‘general swelling’ and ‘heart failure’.
Doctors subsequently released a statement confirming Pele had a respiratory infection which required antibiotics but insisted he was in a stable condition. The former striker, the only player to win the World Cup three times, also posted an encouraging update, but things appear to have deteriorated towards the end of the week.
Folha de Sao Paulo reported on Saturday that Pele has become unresponsive to chemotherapy treatment, which he has been undergoing for many months to tackle cancer. Further, he has been taken to a ward for those battling life-threatening illnesses or who require end-of-life care.
In response to the sad update, former England striker and Match of the Day host Gary Lineker took to Twitter to write in Portuguese, “very sad news”. Elsewhere, France talisman Kylian Mbappe said, “Pray for the King.”
While receiving pain-relief medication in Albert Einstein Hospital, Pele is believed to be accompanied at his bedside by his carer and his wife, Marcia Aoki
While Pele has been unwell for many years, news of this latest upsetting development will come as a surprise after he posted a reassuring update just one day earlier. In response to a “Get well soon” message which lit up a skyscraper in Qatar, where the World Cup is being contested, he wrote on Instagram : “Friends, I am at the hospital making my monthly visit. It’s always nice to receive positive messages like this.
Thanks to Qatar for this tribute, and to everyone who sends me good vibes!”
Further, Pele’s daughter, Kely Nascimento, who is not in Brazil, also declared that her father’s trip to hospital should not cause alarm. She wrote: “Lots of alarm in the media today concerning my dad’s health.
“He is in the hospital regulating medication. There is no emergency or new dire prediction. I will be there for New Year’s and promise to post some pictures.”
Pele’s former club Santos also took to Twitter on Saturday, writing: “It’s the whole world wishing you well, King.” The global icon played for the Brazilian giants between 1956 and 1974 before a brief stint with New York Cosmos, and Santos maintain he scored nearly 1,000 goals.
Pele’s official tally stands at 757 goals in 831 games, while he enjoyed World Cup triumphs with Brazil in 1958, when he was just 17 years old, 1962 and 1970. Many regard the prolific former frontman as the greatest footballer of all time and his influence in his homeland is enormous even in his old age.
-Mirror
Former England soccer captain David Beckham and actor Gary Oldman were knighted in King Charles’ annual birthday honours list on Saturday, while sculptor Antony Gormley was made a Companion of Honour.
Beckham, 50, joined Manchester United as a trainee in 1993, going on to make almost 400 appearances for the club where he won a string of titles and cups.
He subsequently played for Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, and Inter Milan, as well as captaining his country 58 times and making 115 appearances.
His marriage to fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham in 1999 cemented a celebrity status which went far beyond his sporting exploits.
Oldman, 67, started his career on the stage, where he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, before rising to prominence in film. He won the best actor Oscar for playing Winston Churchill in the 2017 drama “Darkest Hour”.
He also had roles in the “Dark Knight Trilogy” and the “Harry Potter” movie series and more recently starred in the TV spy drama “Slow Horses”.
Other famous names receiving honours included damehoods for musical theatre star Elaine Paige, novelist Pat Barker and ceramics maker Emma Bridgewater.
Roger Daltrey, lead singer of rock band the Who and a patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, received a knighthood for services to charity.
More than 1,200 people received honours for their achievements, with a particular focus on those who had given their time to public service, the government said.
King Charles’ official birthday will be celebrated with the annual “Trooping the Colour” military parade in London on Saturday. His actual birthday is on November 14
-Reuters
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One of three judges in Diego Maradona’s closely scrutinized homicide trial in Argentina resigned on Tuesday amid a scandal triggered by the alleged filming of an unauthorised documentary, bringing uncertainty to the future of legal proceedings.
The high-profile trial over the death of soccer star Maradona began on March 11 in the South American country where the World Cup winner is still revered.
-Reuters
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For the third year in a row, and the fifth time overall, Cristiano Ronaldo is the world’s highest-paid athlete.
But at age 40, the Portuguese soccer superstar is reaching new highs.
Over the past 12 months, counting both his playing salary at Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr and his off-field business endeavors, Ronaldo collected an estimated $275 million before taxes and agent fees—the third-best year by an active athlete ever measured by Forbes.
On that all-time list, Ronaldo is surpassed only by boxer Floyd Mayweather, who earned $300 million in 2015 and $285 million in 2018.
And when it comes to the 2025 leaderboard, Ronaldo has a $119 million advantage over No. 2, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry.
The League of Wealthy Sportsmen
The gap is especially impressive considering that Curry’s $156 million total is also a record for his sport, beating the NBA mark of $128.2 million set last year by LeBron James.
And there are plenty of other eye-popping paydays among this year’s 10 highest-paid athletes, starting with James, who notched a personal-best $133.8 million to land at No. 6. Meanwhile, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (No. 4, $137million) and New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto (No. 7, $114 million) broke records for the NFL and MLB.
Combined, the 10 highest-paid athletes brought in $1.4 billion, up slightly from last year’s $1.38 billion and the largest total since Forbes began ranking athlete earnings in 1990.
This year is also only the second time, after 2024, that every member of the top 10 made at least $100 million.
In fact, heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk ($101 million) and golfer Jon Rahm ($100 million) reached the milestone, too, without managing to crack this list.
For the third year in a row, and the fifth time overall, Cristiano Ronaldo is the world’s highest-paid athlete.
But at age 40, the Portuguese soccer superstar is reaching new highs.
Over the past 12 months, counting both his playing salary at Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr and his off-field business endeavors, Ronaldo collected an estimated $275 million before taxes and agent fees—the third-best year by an active athlete ever measured by Forbes.
On that all-time list, Ronaldo is surpassed only by boxer Floyd Mayweather, who earned $300 million in 2015 and $285 million in 2018.
And when it comes to the 2025 leaderboard, Ronaldo has a $119 million advantage over No. 2, Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry.
The gap is especially impressive considering that Curry’s $156 million total is also a record for his sport, beating the NBA mark of $128.2 million set last year by LeBron James.
And there are plenty of other eye-popping paydays among this year’s 10 highest-paid athletes, starting with James, who notched a personal-best $133.8 million to land at No. 6. Meanwhile, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (No. 4, $137million) and New York Mets outfielder Juan Soto (No. 7, $114 million) broke records for the NFL and MLB.
Combined, the 10 highest-paid athletes brought in $1.4 billion, up slightly from last year’s $1.38 billion and the largest total since Forbes began ranking athlete earnings in 1990.
This year is also only the second time, after 2024, that every member of the top 10 made at least $100 million.
In fact, heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk ($101 million) and golfer Jon Rahm ($100 million) reached the milestone, too, without managing to crack this list.
World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2025
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