Leão wears Portugal's No. 7 after Ronaldo leaves camp

Rafael Leão wore Cristiano Ronaldo's No. 7 in Portugal's 4-2 win at Denmark after Ronaldo left camp and UEFA squad rules required the number to be filled.

Rafael Leão started Portugal's 4-2 victory over Denmark in Copenhagen on Oct. 1 in the No. 7 shirt made famous by Cristiano Ronaldo. The change came one day after the 41-year-old Ronaldo left Portugal's camp, and it drew widespread attention well beyond a routine squad list.

Ronaldo departed the camp in Copenhagen on Sept. 30 and confirmed the move in an Instagram post after speaking with federation president Pedro Proença. He passed on his best wishes to Portugal and his teammates and said he would explain his reasons to the Portuguese public at a later date. Earlier in the window he had started the Nations League match against Wales and stayed on the bench as an unused substitute in the 2-1 win over Norway, and manager Jorge Jesus had already named Gonçalo Ramos as his starter in attack against Denmark.

The switch was largely forced by regulation. UEFA's 2026/27 Nations League rules require every association to hand in a 23-player list for each league-phase match, with shirt numbers running from 1 to 23, so Portugal could not leave No. 7 vacant once Ronaldo was gone. Leão, previously No. 17, moved into the famous digit, with Fábio Silva taking the 17. Portugal has not made the change permanent — Ronaldo has not announced his international retirement, and the number could yet return to him.

Leão was born on June 10, 1999, in Almada and came through Sporting CP's academy after joining the club in 2008. He went on to spend seven seasons at AC Milan, helping the club win the 2021-22 Serie A title, before joining Galatasaray in August 2026. Galatasaray announced a fixed €38 million transfer fee and a four-year contract carrying a guaranteed net salary of €10 million per season.

Against Denmark, Leão earned his 51st cap, having gone into the match on 50 appearances and six international goals. He was part of the squad that won the 2025 UEFA Nations League, when Rúben Neves converted the decisive penalty in the final shootout. After the 4-2 win, Leão said the shirt was special because Ronaldo had been his idol since childhood, adding that the number holds personal meaning since his children were born on the seventh.

No. 7 carries weight across the game, having been worn by stars such as Garrincha, Kevin Keegan, David Beckham and Raúl. Ronaldo built his CR7 lifestyle brand — spanning fragrances, footwear and sportswear — around the number, though he too once wore No. 17 for Portugal, at Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup, while Luís Figo held No. 7. He inherited the shirt after Figo retired, ahead of Euro 2008, and at club level Sir Alex Ferguson persuaded him to accept No. 7 at Manchester United, which he wore from his debut against Bolton in the 2003 season opener.

With Portugal, Ronaldo won three senior titles: one European Championship and two Nations League crowns. He remains the men's international record holder with 146 goals and, per UEFA, 234 caps as of Sept. 29, 2026. In 2026 he became the first player to score in six FIFA World Cups, closing that chapter with 27 World Cup appearances and 11 goals, and he sits atop the UEFA Champions League scoring list with 140 goals.

His international future is again uncertain. Ronaldo said before this window that he had weighed retiring from international football after the 2026 World Cup before deciding to carry on, and his Sept. 30 departure has reopened those questions.

Portugal's next fixture is at home to Norway on Sunday, Oct. 4, at Estádio do Dragão in Porto in the UEFA Nations League, kicking off at 2:45 PM EDT on FS2. Portugal goes into the game off the back of the 4-2 win in Copenhagen.