Pele to act as honorary ambassador for 2014 World CupJuly 27, 2011 - 18:22 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Football legend Pele accepted an invitation from Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff to act as an honorary ambassador for the 2014 World Cup. The 70-year-old Brazilian said it was an honour that he could not turn down. "From the first World Cup that I played (in 1958) I've been doing this: I defend and promote Brazil. It's a very big responsibility and I could not turn down the invitation," said Pele. Pele told his compatriots to show their pride in hosting the tournament by putting aside criticism over delays and the slow pace of preparations to stage the best World Cup possible. Sports Minister Orlando Silva said that Pele had been a natural choice because of "all he had done for sport in Brazil. He's a man who knows a lot about the world of football. He's going to help and represent us". Pele won the World Cup three times - 1958, 1962 and 1970 - and is the top scorer of all time with 1,281 goals throughout his career, AFP reported. Top stories Armenian gymnast, Olympic bronze medalist Artur Davtyan has reached the finals of the World Cup. Gor Manvelyan has denied reports alleging that he has expressed a desire to one day play for the French national team. Roma midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan is not considering FC Spartak Moscow as his next haven, according to fresh reports. 10 Armenian lifters will compete in the 2021 World Championships scheduled to be held from 7 to 17 December in Tashkent. Partner news | Macron honors Charles Aznavour on 100th anniversary French President Emmanuel Macron has paid tribute to the memory of French-Armenian crooner Charles Aznavour. Erdogan’s approval rating falls below 40 percent: survey A total of 53.4 percent of respondents said they disapprove of the performance of Erdoğan. Blinken says U.S. reviewing a number of aid requests from Armenia He said the U.S. is reviewing the requests to determine what more it can do to increase its assistance to Armenia. At least 2 CSTO members participated in preparing 44-day war against Armenia – PM Nikol Pashinyan has declared that at least two CSTO member countries participated in preparations for the 44-day war against Armenia. |