Football legend Pele’s funeral live updates: Over 2,30,000 people attend wake for the Brazilian

More than 230,000 people attended wake for Pele, as claimed by the Santos football club.

FIFA boss Gianni Infantino -- also in attendance at the funeral -- told journalists, "We’re going to ask every country in the world to name one of their football stadiums with the name of Pele."

Fans have been singing for their real-life hero Pele while waiting in long queues. Preparations are underway for the 24-hour long wake starting at 10:00 AM local time. Meanwhile, Santos’ stadium is inundated with tributes. 
 

Some fans were spotted waiting overnight to pay tribute to the football star. Some joined the queues 14 hours before the official funeral time to get the last glance of the mortal remains. On New Year's Eve, the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) displayed a photo of Pele at its Rio de Janeiro headquarters as part of a moving tribute.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu will attend Pele's funeral in Santos, Brazil, today. Mr Cavusoglu arrived earlier in the South American country to attend President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's inauguration ceremony. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is said to have told Mr Cavusoglu to stay longer and attend Pele's funeral.

As the coffin of the legendary Footballer Pele arrived at Vila Belmiro, his fans were seen gathered on the sides of roads hoping to have the last glance of the mortal remains before his burial on Tuesday. Thousands of his fans are expected to attend the funeral that starts at 10 AM local time today in Santos.
 

Pele's final wish was to be buried on the ninth floor of a cemetery in his beloved home city of Santos. It's a touching tribute to his late father, who always wore the No. 9 jersey as a player. 

Pelé family deliberately chose to not have the wake during New Year's weekend out of respect for President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The wake starts Monday at 10 AM local time with public access. The wake ends at 10 AM local time Tuesday, from where a parade-like procession will take place in the streets of Santos. The procession will pass by Pele’s mother’s house, who still lives in the house but is unaware of her son’s death. Eventually, Pele’s mortal remains will reach Ecumenical Necropolis Memorial the same day where family members will have a private ceremony for his burial that day.
 

Pele's coffin is currently at Vila Belmiro Stadium, which will be visited by hundreds of thousands of fans on Monday. It will be kept there for the next 24 hours. His coffin will be carried through a Santos suburb on Tuesday, where his 100-year-old mother Dona Celeste still lives.