We used Google DeepMind technology to reconstruct a lost piece of football history and tell the story of how it all came to life.
On August 2, 1959, Pelé scored the most beautiful goal of his career: three consecutive “sombreros” over defenders and the goalkeeper without the ball ever touching the ground. But the moment was never captured on film.
For over 60 years, the legendary "Gol da Rua Javari" lived in the memories of the fans who were there. Now, in collaboration with Pelé’s family, historians, sports journalists and football legends, we used Google DeepMind technology to reconstruct this piece of football history. The work was created in full partnership with Pelé Brand, the platform responsible for preserving, protecting and expanding Pelé’s legacy, under the leadership of NR Sports.
The “Gol da Rua Javari” reconstruction is presented as a mini-documentary that features interviews with the historians, journalists, Pelé’s family, eyewitnesses and football legends with whom we worked to tell the story of an incredible moment in football history.
“He would be so proud to see all this happening. He’d always say it was a shame that the goal was never recorded. So being able to relive it, with all this technology, is amazing." — Flávia Kurtz, Pelé’s Daughter
To get the history exactly right, Brazilian historian Anita Lucchesi and her team gathered nearly 2,000 historical records — from blueprints to family albums. They interviewed eyewitnesses, journalists and the Mooca community, using a scale model of the stadium, archival photographs and diagrams to help those who saw the goal reconstruct it from memory.
Over 3,600 historical images were gathered to accurately reconstruct the goal.
Historical photograph of the “Gol da Rua Javari”, taken on August 2nd, 1959.