FIFA Player of the Century

Football is one such game which has universal fans - one can see children playing football in dirt, fields and even streets. From here some of the best players of football rise to the heights of glory and fame. 

Pelé (L) and Maradona (R)

When talking of glory and fame, two names instantly come to mind: Pelé and Maradona. Both these players made headlines whenever they were playing or even when they were out sitting in the crowd. 

To honour the best football players ever, FIFA decided to give away one-off award "FIFA Player of the Century" to be given to the best football player of the 20th century. And quite obviously, FIFA could not decide on one name and had a unanimous decision to give away the award to Pele and Maradona, as both deserve to be remembered forever for their contribution to the game of football.

When deciding for the player of the century, Maradona won the Internet based poll by wide margins, garnering 53.6% of the votes against 18.53% for Pelé. In spite of this, and shortly before the ceremony, FIFA unexpectedly decided to add a second award and appointed a "Football Family" committee composed of football journalists that also gave to Pelé the title of best player of the century to make it a draw. Many suspected that Pelé was rewarded for his constant support of FIFA, in contrast to Maradona's frequent criticism.

Research Source: Wikipedia