WALL TOWNSHIP — Longtime Wall resident and noted sports photojournalist George Tiedemann released his book “Pelé, His North American Years: A Tribute” on Monday. The book highlights Pelé’s career-capping years in the U.S.
The book opening took place at Pelé Soccer NYC in Times Square, with Mr. Tiedemann in attendance.
It’s pretty cool to have that happen,” Mr. Tiedemann told The Coast Star Tuesday. “Although, it [photographing Pelé] was just part of my job and what I was assigned to do.”
With Mr. Tiedemann’s photography, and text by journalist Charles Cuttone, the book focuses on three distinct games with the North American Soccer League’s [NASL] New York Cosmos, to tell the story of Pelé’s final years as a player and his impact on fans, teammates, coaches and the sporting press.
Each of the four chapters highlights a different phase of the Brazilian’s time in a Cosmos shirt, as well as his relationship with media, NASL front office and even the United States Soccer Federation; “The Arrival,” “Growing the Game,” “Out on Top” and “Tearful Farewell.”
The first chapter depicts Pelé’s first game in America, an exhibition match against the Dallas Tornado on June 10, 1975. “It was a big deal,” said Mr. Tiedemann. “You had this larger-than-life guy come into a place where people didn’t really pay attention to soccer at the time. There’s really no pinpointing just how much the switch kind of flipped from then on.”
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