Football teams that retired shirt numbers

In the high-stakes theatre of professional football, certain jerseys carry a weight far beyond the fabric.

Retiring a squad number is the ultimate mark of reverence, a formal declaration that a player’s contribution was so monumental or their loss so profound that no successor should ever fill their boots. While common in North American sports, this practice is a rare and prestigious distinction in the global game.

Many players have had their shirt numbers retired, either for having made such an enormous impact during their time with the team, or out of respect if that player suffered a tragic early death.

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Here, Sporting Tribune writes about football teams that have retired shirt numbers to immortalise their legends.

Napoli (No. 10)

No list is complete without Diego Maradona. The Argentine maestro transformed the Partenopei from underdogs to Serie A champions. Since 2000, the famous blue number 10 has remained vacant at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

Ajax (No. 14)

The Dutch giants retired the No. 14 in 2007 to honour Johan Cruyff, the architect of “Total Football.” His influence on the club’s philosophy remains the blueprint for their academy today.

AC Milan (No. 3 & No. 6)

The Rossoneri have protected the legacies of two defensive titans. Paolo Maldini’s No. 3 was retired in 2009, though with a unique caveat: it can only be unretired for one of his sons. Similarly, Franco Baresi’s No. 6 was shelved after 20 years of impeccable service at the back.

As Roma (No. 10)

Francesco Totti is one of the most famous one-club men in football history, having spent the entirety of his 24-year playing career with his beloved AS Roma. Therefore, it was only natural that once he finally hung up his boots, the Italian side retired the number 10 that had adorned the back of his shirt from 1997 to 2017.

Liberia (No. 14)

George Weah is indisputably the greatest player ever produced by the country of Liberia, and his legacy extended beyond his playing career when he was elected President of the country in 2018, serving a six-year term. Having won 61 caps and scored 22 goals, the striker’s number 14, which he wore for the bulk of his international career, was retired by the national team in 2018.

Brescia (No. 10)

Roberto Baggio is regarded as one of the greatest Italian players of all time, who shone for some of the greatest teams in Italian football.

However, it is for his exploits with a smaller team at the end of his career that his shirt number was forever retired by a club in his honour.

Nantes (No. 9)

After the heartbreaking plane crash involving Emiliano Sala in 2019, the French side ensured no other player would wear his No. 9 jersey again.

West Ham United (No. 6 & No. 38)

The Hammers retired the No. 6 for the legendary Bobby Moore in 2008, 15 years after his death. More recently, the No. 38 was retired in memory of Dylan Tombides, a promising young striker who lost his battle with cancer in 2014.

Budapest Honved (No. 10)

Ferenc Puskas is one of the greatest goal scorers in football history and played in an era where his native Hungary were one of the most fearsome footballing powers on the planet.

He came through at a club called Kispest Honved, who became known as Budapest Honved in 1949, when the team was acquired by the Hungarian army.

Bayern Munich (No. 15)

The footballing world lost Franz Beckenbauer, one of its greatest ever stars, when he passed away at the age of 78 in 2024. He is considered the greatest defender of all-time.

The Germans’ impact on the pitch was undeniable and unlike anything that was seen before or after his time. When he died, Bayern Munich retired his shirt number because of the great talent he was during his stay with the club.