Mario Zagallo, Brazil’s four-time World Cup winner, passes away at 92

RIO DE JANEIRO (Agencies): Mario Zagallo, who won four soccer World Cups for Brazil as either player or coach, has died, according to a post on his official Instagram account on Saturday. He was 92. A tough and talented left winger, Zagallo played on the team that won Brazil’s first World Cup in 1958 and he kept his place in the side that retained the title four years later. In 1970, he coached a Brazil squad that featured all-time greats like Pele, Jairzinho, Rivellino and Tostao ––- one that many consider to be the greatest national team ever to play the game. They won Brazil’s third World Cup in Mexico. That made Zagallo the first person in the sport to win a World Cup as both a player and a manager. Later, he was assistant coach to Carlos Alberto Parreira when Brazil won their fourth title in 1994 in the United States. FIFA President Gianni Infantino expressed condolences to Brazil on Saturday, describing Zagallo’s impact on the World Cup as “unparalleled”. The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said it would hold a seven-day mourning period to honor Zagallo, while the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) said it was mourning the loss of the only four-time world champion. Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed condolences to Zagallo’s family, friends and “millions of admirers” in a posting on X, formerly known as Twitter. His Brazilian fans loved him for his idiosyncratic personality and unapologetic nationalism. He liked to say he was born with victory at his side and was rarely shy to challenge those who said his teams were too defensive.