Os Santásticos

Os Santásticos (Brazilian Portuguese: [us sɐ̃ˈtastʃikus], The Santastics) is the nickname for the group of Santos Futebol Clube players coached by Lula and Antoninho that won a total of 25 titles between 1959 to 1974, including two Copa Libertadores. Often considered one of the strongest teams ever assembled in any sport, scoring over 3000 goals during this period, with an average of over 2.5 goals per match. Also known as O Balé Branco (Portuguese: [u baˈlɛ ˈbɾɐ̃ku], The White Ballet) or Time dos Sonhos (Portuguese: [ˈtʃĩmi dus ˈsõɲus], Dream Team), they dominated Brazilian football and became a symbol of Joga Bonito thanks to figures such as Gilmar, Mauro, Mengálvio, Coutinho, Pepe and the iconic Pelé. Pele made Santos FC famous around the world in this revolutionary era, therefore his lesser-known teammates are best known as "Pele's friends."

The beginning

In 1956, Waldemar de Brito took Pelé to Santos, an industrial and port city in the state of São Paulo, to try out for professional club Santos Futebol Clube telling the directors at Santos that the 15-year-old would be "the greatest football player in the world." Santos were at the time the top team in São Paulo, having just won two consecutive State champions when Pelé joined.