In an NBA arena, all you have to do is look up. The banners hanging from the rafters bear numbers that no one will wear again. The same idea exists in a football stadium, but itโs far less noticeable: a number missing from the playersโ list, a jersey number the team refuses to assign, sometimes forever.
Retiring a number turns a jersey number into a monument. The practice originated in the United States, became central to NBA culture, and was adopted later in football, more rarely and often in more painful circumstances. Hereโs how it works, some of the best-known cases in both sports, and why some leagues almost entirely prohibit it.
Retiring a number means that no player on the team can wear it again. In the NBA, itโs a widespread tradition of honoring players, marked by a banner in the arena. Bill Russellโs number 6 was even retired league-wide in 2022, a unique case.
In football, the practice remains exceptional and is often a posthumous tribute. Naplesโ number 10 for Diego Maradona is the most famous case, alongside Franco Baresiโs number 6 at Milan and Johan Cruyffโs number 14 at Ajax.
Retiring a number: what it means in practice
A retired number is permanently taken out of circulation by the team. No one receives it when signing a contract, it no longer appears on a team sheet, and it remains associated with a single player. In most cases, the decision is accompanied by a ceremony: a banner raised to the rafters in basketball, or a framed jersey or guard of honor in football.
The reasons vary. Lโsports tribute honors an entire career with the same team. Lโposthumous tribute honors a player who has passed away, sometimes in the prime of their career. A third, rarer category concerns the fans themselves, with some teams dedicating a symbolic number to them.
This is the most common practice in the NBA. The team retires the number of a legend who has shaped its history, generally after several titles or a career spent mostly wearing the same jersey.
Examples include Michael Jordanโs 23 with the Chicago Bulls, Kareem Abdul-Jabbarโs 33, and Javier Zanettiโs 4 at Inter Milan after more than eight hundred matches for the club.
In football, this is often what prompts the decision. The number then becomes a memorial, and its absence from the squad is noticed every season.
Examples include Marc-Vivien Foรฉโs No. 23 at Manchester City, Davide Astoriโs No. 13 at Fiorentina, Dani Jarqueโs No. 21 at Espanyol, and Antonio Puertaโs No. 16 at Sevilla FC.
A few clubs reserve a number for their fans. No. 12 symbolizes the twelfth man, the one who spurs the team on from the stands, and therefore cannot be assigned to any player.
LโOlympique de Marseille and Lazio Rome are among the European clubs that have adopted this symbol. In the NBA, several franchises have dedicated No. 6 to their fans, in the same spirit of the sixth man.
A tradition established in the NBA over decades
American basketball has made retired numbers part of the scenery. Each arena displays its own, and the number of banners tells the franchiseโs story. The Boston Celtics hold the record by far, with more than twenty numbers taken out of circulation, which also poses a practical problem: almost no two-digit numbers are left available.
Kobe Bryantโs case is worth a closer look. The Lakers retired both his numbers on the same night: No. 8, worn during the first part of his career, and No. 24, worn in his later seasons. It was a way of recognizing that, in terms of playing style and role, there were two different players under the same name.
Michael Jordanโs case raises a different question. The Miami Heat retired No. 23 even though Jordan never wore the franchiseโs jersey, simply to recognize his influence on the game. Praised by some and challenged by others, the decision shows that retiring a number is a matter of club choice, not a written rule.
When Boston wanted to honor Jim Loscutoff without retiring another number, the club raised a banner bearing his nickname rather than his jersey number. This left No. 18 available to be reassigned, and it was later worn by another major player in the franchiseโs history.
Bill Russellโs No. 6, retired league-wide
In August 2022, the NBA made an unprecedented decision: to retire Bill Russellโs number 6 across all 30 franchises at once. With 11 championships, a major role in the fight for civil rights, and the distinction of being the first Black person to coach a major professional team in the United States, the league decided the tribute should go beyond a single club.
One exception was made. Players who were already wearing number 6 when the announcement was made were allowed to keep it until the end of their careers, which explains why the number continued to appear on the court after the decision. New arrivals, however, can no longer choose it.
A number retired by an entire league, rather than by a club, remains a unique case in American sports to this day.
NBA, tribute to Bill Russell, 2022Rare and notable cases in football
Football long ignored this practice for a simple reason: until the 1990s, numbers indicated positions, not people. Number 9 was the striker, number 1 the goalkeeper, and the same shirt number changed hands from match to match. Retiring a number made no sense. Everything changed when fixed numbers were assigned for the season, creating a lasting connection between a player and their number.
| Number | Player | Club | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Diego Maradona | Naples | Tribute to the most influential figure in the clubโs history |
| 6 | Franco Baresi | AC Milan | Entire career at the club, iconic captain |
| 3 | Paolo Maldini | AC Milan | Retired with a caveat: a Maldini son could wear it |
| 4 | Javier Zanetti | Inter Milan | Longevity and status as a historic captain |
| 14 | Johan Cruyff | Ajax Amsterdam | Tribute to the inventor of a style of play |
| 6 | Bobby Moore | West Ham United | Captain of the 1966 world champions |
| 23 | Marc-Vivien Foรฉ | Manchester City | Posthumous tribute after his death in 2003 |
| 10 | Roberto Baggio | Brescia | Tribute to the playerโs career at the club |
Paolo Maldiniโs number 3 illustrates the Italian nuance. The club announced that the number would be retired, unless one of his sons were to wear the rossonero shirt one day. So it isnโt permanently retired, but rather reserved for the family, a practice found nowhere else.
In Naples, number 10 holds a different kind of significance. The number was retired shortly after Maradona left the club, long before his death, and became a touchstone for understanding the stadium and the cityโs entire dรฉcor. If youโre interested in numbers steeped in history, our guide to what every shirt number represents explains the origins of every squad number, from 1 to 99.
Why football retires so few numbers
Itโs not just a matter of culture. Several regulations make the practice difficult, if not impossible. In Spain, professional squad players must wear numbers between 1 and 25, leaving very little room: reserving a number means losing an option for the squad. This is one reason why major Spanish clubs have virtually no retired numbers.
In Italy and England, the range goes up to 99, which explains why these leagues are more open to retiring numbers. For national teams, the question doesnโt even arise: World Cup squad lists require consecutive numbering starting at 1, and a federation canโt decide to skip a number. FIFA rejected a request to do so in the 2000s.
Can you still wear a retired number?
Yes, and thatโs the whole point. A retired number doesnโt disappear from stores; it disappears from the locker room. Thereโs nothing stopping a fan from having 23 printed on a Bulls jersey, 10 on a Napoli jersey or 14 on an Ajax jersey. These are also among the most popular choices for personalization.
On basketball jerseys, the number is part of the design itself and is often printed on reissues of historic models from the outset. On football jerseys, names and numbers are chosen when you place your order. Itโs the easiest way to pay tribute to a player without waiting for a club to decide anything.
Three jerseys linked to numbers that made history.
Frequently asked questions
Bill Russellโs number 6, retired by all thirty franchises in August 2022. Players who were already wearing it at the time were allowed to keep it until the end of their careers.
Because Spanish regulations require the professional squad to use numbers from 1 to 25, with no gaps. Retiring a number would reduce the teamโs numbering options.
No. International rosters follow a continuous, mandatory numbering system, and FIFA rejected a request to change this. Only Napoli has retired its number 10.
Itโs rare but possible, since the decision is up to the club. The best-known case is Paolo Maldiniโs number 3 at Milan, reserved for one of his sons if he ever played for the club.
Yes. The retirement applies only to the clubโs roster. For fans, these numbers are among the most requested for customization, with or without the associated playerโs name.
Numbers that became proper names
A retired number tells a short story: a player, a club, and a decision made to ensure the bond is never broken. The NBA has made it a permanent fixture, football has made it a moving exception, and each league has its own numbering rules.
What remains common to both worlds is the power of the symbol. When you see a 23 on a Chicago court or a 10 on the streets of Naples, no explanation is needed. To continue your visit on the court, discover the greatest NBA jerseys in history, where several of these numbers take center stage.