Have you ever wondered why 🇬🇭 Abedi Ayew – one of Ghana’s greatest players ever – was named after Pelé?
Well, here’s a short story…
Abedi Ayew was born in Kibi and grew up in the town of Dome at the northern outskirts of Accra. He grew up with 18 siblings and all he ever wanted to do was just play football. He had absolutely no idea who Pelé was because he never had access to electricity and televisions.
But even at a young age, whenever Abedi is playing football in any small corner he finds himself, he realised people older than him kept shouting ‘oh Pele, he plays like Pele.’
The nickname got more popular when he attended Ghana Senior High School in Tamale and at a point, no one referred to him as Abedi Ayew. Everyone including his teachers, friends and family started to call him ‘Abedi Pelé’.
The nickname Pelé followed the attacking midfielder all the way from Ghana to some of the world’s biggest football stages, including the 1993 Champions League final where he helped lead the French club Olympique Marseille to its first ever European championship.
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