The president of Santos has confirmed they plan to try and retire the number 10 shirt in honour of the legendary Pele.
Pele, the club’s greatest-ever player and one of the biggest names in global football, passed away earlier this month at the age of 82, with the world coming together to pay tribute to a true icon of the game.
Santos president Andres Rueda has confirmed that, following a request from Pele’s family, they will stop playing with the number 10 shirt immediately while they attempt to retire the shirt altogether.
“With the understanding of the family, we will propose that the number 10 shirt be retired,” Rueda told Radio BandNews. “This is a bureaucratic procedure which requires approval from a Council meeting.
“Meanwhile, as an administrative act, we will not wear the number 10 shirt from January onwards in the hope that it will become a final decision.”
Brazil’s Deliberative Council must approve the request to formally retire the shirt, while permission must also be sought from CONMEBOL and FIFA. Competitions like the Copa Libertadores require teams to allocate every shirt number from 1 up to the final member of the squad without any gaps.
Until they are legally allowed to withdraw the 10 from circulation, Santos are expected to assign the shirt to a third-choice goalkeeper or a fringe player from the academy who will not play any minutes.
Credit: 90min.com
