Brazil to change Maracana stadium to Rei Pele
Brazilian legend Pele has been honored in his country, by having his name on the Maracana stadium. Legislatures have approved the name change after a mild debate.
Maracana stadium to be a changed to Rei Pele
The Brazilian legislation has confirmed that the soccer stadium with a huge capacity of about 85, 000 will be changed to the country's best footballer of all time. However, they have said some parts of the complex can continue to bear the current name ml. Brazil’s Maracana stadium is set to have a new name after the state lawmakers voted on Wednesday to replace it with the Edson Arantes do Nascimento stadium.
The 79-year-old Pele remains the best export of football for Brazil and has played various times for the country. He is alleged to have scored his 1,000 goals at the stadium playing for Santos. The Rei in the name signifies a king in the Portuguese language.
'' This is a well-deserved honor to an individual known globally for his fests on and off the football arena. He has honored the country and given great services to the nation '' A lawmaker said.
Some critics feel the name change is not necessary for Brazil at this time
The stadium which hosted the 1950 and 2014 football finals was named after Mario Filho, a prominent journalist in Brazil. The name Maracana was because that is the environment in which the stadium was built. However, the slight stumbling block is that the Rio state governor must accede to the bill before it could be changed fully.
There has been little criticism though about the name change as some people felt this isn't necessary, and he should be issued a better honor. Others felt there can't be a better honor than changing Brazil's top stadium to its name. According to Sandro, a leader in Rio, '' Pele deserves this recognition and many more people are just been cynical ''.