Pelé played futsal, then commonly called indoor football, in Bauru as a teenager.
The game was becoming popular in Bauru during Pelé’s mid-teens. He played for a team called Radium and took part in one of the region’s first futsal competitions. His team won the inaugural local championship and several subsequent tournaments.
Pelé later credited futsal with improving his football. The smaller court, quicker pace and close pressure forced players to make decisions rapidly, sharpen their control and use limited space creatively. Those skills became important features of Pelé’s style on a full-size football pitch.
Futsal is sometimes confused with showbol or street football, but those are different formats. Futsal is a formal indoor variant played on a hard court, usually with five players per side and a smaller, low-bounce ball. Pelé’s early futsal experience was one part of the technical foundation he built before joining Santos.