Initiative aspires to honor Pelé and fight against COVID-19

Barcelona, October 23rd, 2020 – Dozens of global sports stars and other celebrities are joining the #Pelegacy grassroots movement to honour football icon Pelé. The three-time FIFA World Cup Winner turns 80 on Friday and has seen current and former athletes and personalities send him signed shirt and memorabilia. The initiative, called #PelegacyJerseyExchange, was created to honour Pelé and to raise funds to fight COVID-19 in Brazil.

The #PelegacyJerseyExchange kicked off weeks ago and is reaching its climax on his birthday. The initiative has featured the participation of a growing number of international sports stars and other icons including Kylian Mbappe, Franz Beckenbauer, Thiago Silva, Richarlison, Nani, Gianluca Zambrotta, Usain Bolt, Gustavo Kuerten and David Guetta. All these icons and more have already donated shirts and shown their support for this campaign.

Pelé expressed his gratitude for all the messages that he has been receiving in the past few months: “I thank all those who have already congratulated me on my 80th birthday. I thank God for having arrived lucid and healthy at this age, as well as for the good reception I receive everywhere I go in the world, and all thanks to our dear football. I am grateful, from my heart, for all that I have gained in my career, both at Santos and on the Brazil national team,” said the Brazilian legend.

The #PelegacyJerseyExchange encourages people to virtually exchange a shirt with Pelé. Those who wish to participate should post a video on their social media accounts with a signed shirt, dedicating it to Pelé and passing it from their left to their right. With this movement, #Pelegacy wants to set a new record for the largest virtual shirt exchange in the world. And those who would like to ship their shirt to be considered for the auction for the fight against COVID-19 in Brazil should contact Pelegacy.

“We think we can create the largest ever virtual shirt exchange to honour Pelé,” said #Pelegacy Campaign Founder Umberto Paolucci. “And we will gather all the shirts we receive at the #Pelegacy headquarters and auction them to raise funds for Brazil’s fight against COVID-19. We call on people all over the world to post their videos and send their signed shirts to us.”

Teams like Santos, Flamengo, Corinthians, Fluminense, FC Schalke 04, América, Cruz Azul and Pumas have already participated. All teams and athletes, from any sport and country, are invited to participate in this campaign and contribute with the noble gesture of sending their jersey to Pelé, to be auctioned in favour of the fight against COVID-19 in Brazil. For more information on how to participate, visit @pelegacy on Instagram or the official website www.pelegacy.com.