text: how old was pele, the world renowned footballer from brazil before he retired from active play? pele was one time the world best footballer, but he is retired from active football.how old was he when he retire? when he finally called it a day at the age of 34, santos marked his passing by removing the no.10 shirt from their line-up. it was an admission that no-one could compare with the master.   then, in 1975, pele surprised everyone by coming out of retirement to play for the new york cosmos in america's fledgling soccer league. the price probably helped - a small matter of $4.5 million.   the end of a supreme career finally came in 1977 when pele hung up his boots for good and settled for a role as a sporting ambassador, later becoming brazil's minister for sport.