Goal · 19 November 1969
The 1,000th goal
The penalty against Vasco da Gama at the Maracanã on 19 November 1969 counted as Pelé's 1,000th goal.
Late in the second half against Vasco da Gama, Santos were given a penalty. Pelé took it and beat the Argentine goalkeeper Edgardo Andrada, who got a touch to the ball. Fans and reporters ran onto the pitch.
He dedicated the goal to the children of Brazil, asking people to think of poor children. Brazil's post office issued a stamp to mark it.
The count was disputed even then. It included friendlies, tour games and matches for military and state teams. Counting only official matches, his total at that point was much lower. The exact minute of the goal is given differently by different reports, so it is left out here.
The match it came in
The chapters it appears in
Questions this answers
How many goals did Pelé score?
It depends on what you count, and the figure is disputed. Counting friendlies and exhibitions, Guinness World Records credits him with 1,279 goals in 1,363 matches, FIFA uses 1,281, and Pelé himself claimed 1,283.
What was Pelé's best goal?
There is no agreed answer. The best known are his volley in the 1958 World Cup final and the solo run against Fluminense in 1961 that gave Brazil the phrase gol de placa.
When did Pelé score his 1,000th goal?
Pelé scored his 1,000th goal, by the count of the time, on 19 November 1969, from a penalty for Santos against Vasco da Gama at the Maracanã. The count included friendlies and exhibition matches; counting only official games, he had far fewer at that date.