Retired Shirt Number in Football: Which Are The Most Famous?

As is known by some, certain club’s shirt numbers get retired after a player leaves the club or retires, with one of the most recent examples of this being Birmingham City, who retired the number 22 shirt when Jude Bellingham left the club.

So, what club has retired the most famous number and what player did it belong to before it was retired? Here are 5 of the most famous retired shirt numbers in football.

5 – Bobby Moore, No. 6, West Ham

One of the best English players of all time and someone many people know as the face of that 1966 World Cup team, Bobby Moore had his number retired in 2008 for West Ham. It was done later on in the club’s life than for most players on this list, as they did it to honour him after he passed away. His ability and legacy make him by far the best player in England to have had a shirt number retired. His legacy will forever live on as the number 6 at West Ham eternalises him.

4 – Paolo Maldini, No. 3, AC Milan

We go from the best English defender of all time to possibly the single greatest defender of all time as we see Maldini’s number 3. The AC Milan captain was at the club his entire career and captained the club to numerous trophies, ending his career at the club with 26 trophies, including 7 league titles, 3 Champions Leagues and 2 European Champions Club Cup Winners.

His dedication, along with success with the club, made him a club legend immediately. Add onto this his ability on the pitch, and you can see why his number was retired and can only ever be worn by his son.

After 902 appearances and 33 goals for #ACMilan, the Rossoneri retired the famous #3 shirt in honour of Il Capitano, Paolo Maldini.

Which other #ACM shirt number has been retired? 👹 pic.twitter.com/zH5LXs8GXN

— 3Retro_Football (@3Retro_Football) September 9, 2024

3 – Pele No. 10 Santos

The king of football, as many would have expected, has had his shirt number retired in Brazil. However, it was for a different reason than the others. While he is their greatest ever player and retiring the number permanently would make sense, it was decided that it would be done temporarily.

They decided that no one would wear this shirt when they were relegated for the first time in the club’s history and it would only be able to be worn once again when they were back in the Brazilian Serie A and now the shirt is being worn by a player who is arguably the second-best player in the club’s history and is trying to keep them in the Serie A, Neymar.

2 – Johan Cruyff No.14 Ajax

One of the greatest players who has ever graced the pitch and technical area. Johan Cruyff has had his Ajax number retired as a tribute to him. The number was officially made unavailable to first-team players in 2007 to mark Cruyff’s birthday and it has stayed that way ever since.

The club decided this as a result of his absolute legacy for them and the game of football in general. However, this isn’t the only tribute they did for the legend, as they have also named their stadium after him, the Johan Cruyff Arena. This added symbol pushes his legacy and his number’s fame to a different level.

1 – Diego Maradona No. 10 Napoli

Like Cruyff, Maradona has had his shirt number retired at one of the best clubs in Europe and a club that he made one of the single best clubs at the time. The Argentinean forward turned a team that was seen as an underdog in Italy into something different; he turned them into winners, winning Napoli their first ever title. This was enough to cement him into the walls of Napoli for life.

It was no shock that in 2000 his shirt number was retired and took its place in history. However, this wasn’t it; like Cruyff, the stadium would also be dedicated to him. Once again pushing his shirt number to an even higher level. As a result of his success and impact on the club, he deserves the top spot on this list.

So, What is the Most Famous Retired Number?

Well, as many people would expect, the most famous retired number is 10, with 2 of the greatest players to have ever played the game having worn it and having it retired after they left. What else can you expect? Adding onto this, we could see another addition to this list in a few years when the greatest of all time, Lionel Messi, retires.