FILE - In this July 21, 2004 file photo, Portuguese soccer legend Eusebio Ferreira da Silva leaves his footprint in the Brazilian Hall of Fame at Maracana soccer stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Dozens of former stars, including Pele and Garrincha, are remembered in the gallery. Eusebio, the Portuguese football star who was born into poverty in Africa but became an international sporting icon and was voted one of the 10 best players of all time, has died of heart failure aged 71, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014. (AP Photo/Renzo Gostoli, File)
January 05, 2014 - 1:55 AM
LISBON, Portugal - Portugal's national news agency Lusa says soccer great Eusebio has died of heart failure.
The agency quoted unnamed sources at Benfica, Eusebio's longtime club, saying the 71-year-old retired player died early Sunday.
Officals at Benfica and at the Portuguese Football Federation, where Eusebio was an ambassador, could not immediately be reached.
Eusebio was admitted to hospital several times over the past year for the treatment of heart and respiratory problems.
Eusebio da Silva Ferreira became affectionately known as the Black Panther for his athletic prowess and clinical finishing that made him one of the world's top scorers during his heyday in the 1960s for Benfica and the Portuguese national team.
News from © The Associated Press, 2014