Rafael Leão inherits Ronaldo's iconic number 7 after Portugal departure

Rafael Leão will wear the number 7 for Portugal in the Nations League trip to Denmark, just hours after Cristiano Ronaldo announced his departure from the Seleção camp. The AC Milan forward, usually associated with number 17 in international football, thus inherits the most iconic number in Portuguese football.

The rift between Ronaldo and new manager Jorge Jesus has deepened rapidly. Called up for Jesus’s first squad list, the Portuguese captain started against Wales before being left on the bench against Norway — a decision that reportedly deeply displeased the player. Jesus had warned from the outset: Ronaldo would be treated like any other player, his playing time dependent on his performances.

“After the national team manager’s press conference, and following a conversation with the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, I have decided to leave the national team camp,” Ronaldo wrote on social media, promising to explain the reasons for his departure soon.

Leão is not entirely unfamiliar with the number 7: he wore it at LOSC during the 2018-2019 season, but never in the senior national team shirt. Its assignment comes in a particularly charged context, and the Portuguese press sees it as a strong signal about Ronaldo’s international future.

Yet the Galatasaray forward had stated just days earlier that he was not considering international retirement in the immediate term, clarifying that he would leave only when he no longer felt useful. After 23 years with the Seleção and 137 international goals, no official retirement announcement has been made so far. But the swift reassignment of the number 7 and the open tension with Jesus leave doubt about the future of his relationship with Portugal.