Edson Arantes do Nascimento – RIP. As a footballer he is amongst the very best there has ever been, but he was more than that. He promoted football in Brazil instead of taking the riches offered elsewhere (yes I know he joined NY Cosmos at the end of his career, but that was to promote football in the USA). In genius he may have some who could get close – Maradonna, Cruyff, Messi, Ronaldo – but when we consider the state of the pitches, the weight of the ball, the absence of protection from referees (1966 World Cup springs to mind) no one is able to make a concerted claim to be the best ever other than Pele.
His longevity as a player, his 1200 goals, the number of moves he instigated, and then his work post playing, make him the undoubted Number One.