Portugal players wear Ronaldo’s No. 7 shirt in tribute before Denmark clash

Detailed summary

Portugal’s national team wore Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic No. 7 shirt in a pre-match tribute before their Nations League game against Denmark. Read More:…

Every member of the Portugal national team walked out wearing Cristiano Ronaldo’s iconic number 7 shirt during pre-match ceremonies before their UEFA Nations League match against Denmark at the Estádio Municipal de Braga on Saturday evening.

The coordinated tribute marked Portugal’s first game since Ronaldo announced his retirement from international football on November 5.

The 41-year-old, who holds the men’s records for both international appearances (234) and goals (146), stepped away after a public dispute with head coach Jorge Jesus.

In a post obtained from Fabrizio Romano’s X post on Saturday, “Portugal players, all wearing Cristiano Ronaldo shirts ahead of tonight’s game.”

The decision for the entire squad to wear the No. 7 jersey was agreed in a meeting involving Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proença, coach Jorge Jesus, and senior players including Bernardo Silva, Rúben Dias and Bruno Fernandes.

UEFA granted special permission for the gesture during a competitive fixture.

Club Brugge winger Carlos Forbs was listed with the number 7 for the match itself.

A further tribute was planned for the seventh minute, when supporters were expected to applaud Ronaldo.

Portugal also unveiled a permanent design change to the number 7 shirt.

Opening of the article, excerpted from Punch. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.