Retiring shirt numbers isn’t a widely practiced trend in the world of football. But when it does happen, it happens for good reason. Generally used by clubs to recognise a player’s loyalty or substantial service, it’s also an often practiced way of memorialising a player after death.
With a long steeped history in major North American sports, its fairly recent introduction into football occurred around the 1990s when squad numbers for specific players came into use. Before this time players would be given numbers dependant on where they lined up on the pitch (issued 1 to 11), meaning a player would have worn different numbers throughout the season.
Since that time some of the sport’s greatest names have been honoured, alongside some more relatively unknown but loyal servants to their clubs. We pick out 15 of the most notable shirt numbers to have been retired.
1. Diego Maradona
Club: Napoli
Shirt number: 10
Napoli retired the shirt number in honour of Maradona’s services to the club after he practically single-handedly led them to a maiden Serie A title in 1986-87 and a Coppa Italia. Playing 259 matches for the club and scoring 115 goals, he still leads the Italian side’s top goal scorers list to this day.
Then in 2002, the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) omitted the same shirt number when submitting their squad list of 23 players, shortly before the World Cup in South Korea and Japan. The move was subsequently rejected by FIFA, with the ever-popular Sepp Blatter suggesting the shirt be given to the side’s third-choice goalkeeper. The number 10 has been worn by other players since, most notably by Lionel Messi, whom Maradona considers his “successor.”
2. Gianfranco Zola
Club: Chelsea
Shirt number: 25
English clubs don’t have a long tradition of retiring shirts, but one name that most people can probably agree does in fact deserve the honour is the former Chelsea maestro, Gianfranco Zola. Having joined the West London club in 1996 from Parma, the Italian striker adapted to the Premier League almost immediately and would go on to be voted the ‘Football Writers' Player of the Year’ later that season, the only player ever to win the accolade without playing a full season in the English league. In his time, the 5ft 6in Italian would score 59 goals from 229 appearances.
Before leaving the club in 2003, he was voted Chelsea's greatest player ever and although his famous number 25 hasn’t been officially retired, the shirt has not been has not been reissued since.
3. Stilyan Petrov
Club: Aston Villa
Shirt number: 19
A more contemporary case is that of Aston Villa’s Stilyan Petrov, who was diagnosed with acute leukaemia mid-way through the 2012/13 season in March 2012 and subsequently decided to retire from the game.
In honour of the club captain’s services to the The Villans, Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert announced that Petrov would remain the captain for the remainder of the season, with Ron Vlaar stepping in take over the captaincy in his absence. Petrov attended the club’s next game at Villa Park against Chelsea, where the crowd gave him an ovation in the 19th minute, the shirt number he wore for the club.
With Stilyan Petrov having made a recovery, the shirt was brought back and given to Darren Bent in 2014/15.
4. Temuri Ketsbaia
Club: Anorthosis Famagusta
Shirt number: 14
A memorable figure for Newcastle fans in the late nineties, the fiercely competitive Georgian Geordie is not only immortalised for his on pitch performances but also his bizarre celebrations, including throwing his shirt into the crowd and assaulting advertising hoardings at St. James’ Park.
However, it was Ketsbaia’s services to another club, the Cypriot side Anorthosis Famagusta F.C., where he’s most fondly remembered after winning the Cypriot Championship and domestic cup as both a player and manager. They retired his shirt in 2010.
5. Bobby Moore
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Club: West Ham
Shirt number: 6
Possibly the most iconic English footballer of all time (sorry, Becks), Bobby Moore spent 16 years at West Ham, where he made over 500 club appearances. Moore was chosen in the ‘World Team of the Century’ in 1998 and had his number 6 shirt number retired 50 years after he made his debut for the East London club and 15 years after his death.
In honour of his services, two shirts bearing the number were handed over to Moore’s widow Stephanie during a friendly against Villarreal at Upton Park.
6. Marc-Vivien Foé
7. Roberto Baggio
Club: Brescia
Shirt number: 10
In the twilight of his career and in search of regular football, Italian icon Roberto Baggio resisted offers to move abroad and transferred to top flight strugglers, Brescia. Baggio completed mission impossible with the humble side and kept them in Serie A for the first time in the club’s history, contributing 10 goals and 10 assists.
Baggio, or ‘The Divine Ponytail’ as he came to be known, spent a further three years at Brescia before retiring in 2004. He may be more famous for his stints at Inter, Fiorentina and AC Milan but it was Brescia who retired the number 10 shirt in his honour.
8. Javier Zanetti
9. Henrik Larsson
Club: Helsingborgs
Shirt number: 17
Henrik Larsson is a legend in more places than only Glasgow. The Swede carved a legacy at Helsingborgs IF, where he was one of the key players when they won promotion to the Allsvenskan in 1993, before moving onto sides including Celtic, Manchester United and Barcelona, where he won two league titles and the Champions League.
Following the expiration of his contract at Barcelona, Larsson returned to his hometown club of Helsingborg, where he scored a further 38 league goals in 84 games.
10. Paolo Maldini
11. Lukas Podolski
12. Ramón Morales
Club: C.D. Guadalajara
Shirt number: 11
Morales was an inspirational figure for Guadalajara over 11 seasons, leading them to a Mexican championship as captain. His shirt was never officially retired but all players intending to wear the jersey have to go to the unusual step of asking for Morales’ consent. Currently, the number 11 is worn by vice-captain Jesús Aldo De Nigris.
13. Gyula Grosics
14. Phil O'Donnell
15. Adam Stansfield
