"If you would use the word perfect, Pele almost is there. He was the greatest soccer player in the history of this game," says former West German star Franz Beckenbauer on ESPN Classic's ...

His stardom is unquestionable - and his influence worldwide says much more about him than his ethnicity and background. But for Brazil's black community, hearing those words matter. A lot.

In a country where racism and classism are still so dominant, Pele, a black footballer from a poor background, was an incredible success story. He rarely talked about racism, a stance that he was ...