Cristiano Ronaldo - football’s eternal No. 7

Over the years, several greats; Eric Cantona, George Best and Bryan Robson to name a few; have graced the No. 7 jersey in football. While each left a mark, none are as synonymous with the iconic number as Cristiano Ronaldo.

Doting fans commonly refer to the Portuguese superstar as CR7, which today is nothing short of a global megabrand. Interestingly, Cristiano Ronaldo also owns the CR7 trademark and runs a luxury menswear brand under the banner.

But how did Cristiano become associated with the number 7? Here’s the full story.

Why is the number 7 jersey coveted

In many cultures around the world, the number seven is considered lucky. So, in many fronts of life, including sports, any involvement with the number is highly sought-after.

More often than not, the best or most talented players get their pick of jersey numbers, which has had a cascading effect on the myth of the No. 7 jersey in due time. Watching great players don the No. 7 on the field has only made the number more desirable for future generations.

What was Cristiano Ronaldo’s first jersey number

Cristiano Ronaldo’s first jersey number was No. 28, given to him after he broke into the Sporting Lisbon first team from the youth setup in 2002.

In fact, it was in his jersey No. 28 that Ronaldo turned up for Sporting Lisbon in a pre-season friendly against Manchester United on August 6, 2003. The friendly match was organised to mark the opening of the Estadio Jose Alvalade - Sporting’s new and current home ground.

Ronaldo, at the time just 18, tormented the famous Manchester United defence in the match. Such was the youngster’s impact in the contest, that Man Utd players thronged Sir Alex Ferguson, the then United manager, and David Gill, then the chief executive, in the team bus and demanded that Cristiano Ronaldo be brought to Old Trafford.

A week later, Ronaldo was a Manchester United player.

Why did Cristiano Ronaldo wear the No. 7 jersey at Manchester United

As fate would have it, English superstar David Beckham, who used to occupy United’s No. 7 jersey before Ronaldo, had left the club for Real Madrid earlier in the same summer transfer window.

Manchester United’s iconic No. 7 jersey, worn over the years by club legends like Bryan Robson, George Best and Eric Cantona, was lying vacant and Sir Alex Ferguson deemed Ronaldo fit to take up the mantle.

Cristiano Ronaldo, still barely a teenager at the time, was initially unsure if he was ready to take up such a huge responsibility. Taking over the shirt from Beckham, a Manchester local boy and cult hero, was, after all, a monumental task.

But moved by Sir Alex’s confidence in him, Ronaldo accepted the iconic number. Ronaldo made his Manchester United debut wearing the No. 7 jersey number after coming on as a substitute against Bolton Wanderers in United’s 2003-04 Premier League season opener at Old Trafford. The rest, as they say, is history.

Over his next six seasons at Manchester, Cristiano Ronaldo made the No. 7 shirt his own, helping the Red Devils win the Premier League thrice and the UEFA Champions League once. He also won the Ballon d’Or, the first of his five, in 2008.

Temporary No. 9 jersey in Real Madrid

By the time Ronaldo moved to Real Madrid, his childhood dream club, in 2009, he was already one of the best players in the world.

Despite his reputation, though, Cristiano Ronaldo couldn’t retain the No. 7 jersey after his move to Real Madrid as at the time, it belonged to Raul Gonzalez, a true Madrid local boy and cult hero at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Raul, who was also lovingly called El Capitan for captaining both Real and the Spanish national team for years, however, would end up moving on from his boyhood club the next year, allowing Ronaldo to reclaim his beloved No. 7 jersey.

In his nine seasons with the Spanish giants, eight with the No. 7 on his back, Ronaldo would go on to score over 450 goals for Real Madrid, becoming the legendary club’s all-time top goal scorer. Incidentally, CR7 broke Raul’s record (323 goals) on his way to the top.

Ronaldo won two La Liga titles and a whopping four UEFA Champions League trophies with Real Madrid before moving to Serie A giants Juventus in 2018.

At the time of his move, Colombia’s Juan Cuadrado wore the No. 7 shirt for the Old Lady but this time, there was no making Ronaldo wait. Cuadrado promptly vacated the shirt for the Portuguese superstar.

Having moved back to Manchester United in 2021, Ronaldo, understandably, retained his No. 7 jersey and kept the number even after moving to Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr in 2023.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s numbers for Portugal national football team

Even before staking his claim on the No. 7 at Manchester United, Ronaldo did don the number briefly while representing the Portugal U-17 national team in 2001-02. He switched to No. 11 after his promotion to the U-21 national setup.

Ronaldo’s senior international debut came in August 2003 against Kazakhstan, coming on for Luis Figo as a half-time substitute. The then 18-year-old wore the No. 17 jersey at the time, with Figo, already a Portuguese legend, occupying the No. 7.

Cristiano Ronaldo first wore the No. 7 shirt for the senior Portugal football team while playing at the Athens 2004 Olympics but had to wait for a few more years, till Figo’s retirement in 2006, before staking claim on the Portugal No. 7 jersey full-time.