The Selecao great and three-time FIFA World Cup winner had been in hospital for palliative care in early December after his body stopped responding to cancer treatment, and his daughter confirmed his death on Friday (AEDT).

News of Pele's passing sent shock waves across the world of football, but nowhere would the impact be felt stronger than at Santos, the club where he spent 18 years, scoring 643 goals in 659 matches.

Pele lifted six league titles with the Brazilian side, including five in a row from 1961-1968, as well as the Copa Libertadores twice.

On the international stage, Pele scored 77 goals for Brazil, a record that still stands today but is likely to eventually be broken by Neymar, who pulled level at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

In a short but powerful tribute to the man many regard to be the greatest ever, Santos posted a picture of a crown with just a single word 'eterno' – eternal.

The CBF's Twitter account followed suit, sharing an image of Pele alongside the caption of 'eterno' but adding an infinity symbol instead of 2022 as the year of his death.