Dusting off the iconic seven at Real Madrid. After Mariano and Hazard, Vinícius Junior takes over the mythical number

For some it’s just a number on a jersey, for others it’s much more. But the number seven at Real Madrid, that’s kind of sacred. Last time, however, it was held by two players who dusted off its honour. But since the summer, it’s been back in the hands of a superstar.

Behind the scenes, it was sort of reckoned that Vinícius would not wear the 20 on his jersey from next season onwards, but would wear some other one more in keeping with his status as a star striker.

However, it was expected that he would wear the number 11 on his back that Marco Asensio left. But the whole situation turned out differently. And rather unexpectedly, it was revealed by the introduction of the new signing, Frano García, who posed with the number 20.

At that moment, Real Madrid posted the number changes on their website. Vinícius Junior will take over the legendary number 7, worn by icons such as Kopa, Juanito, Amancio, Butragueño, Raúl and Cristiano Ronaldo.

This is a great thing for the club’s marketing department. The player who sells the most jerseys with the mythical number in Real Madrid’s history. The perfect combination.

But after Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure, the number seven has lost a little weight. First it went to Mariano, who eventually just sat on the bench and refused to leave. After Eden Hazard’s arrival, the management took it away from him and gave it to the Belgian, only he didn’t raise the mythical number either.

Now the dusty number seven should be in good hands again. It’s not just that Vinícius is one of the best players in the world, it’s also that the Brazilian loves the club and the white colours with all his heart and supports the B-team, the women’s team or the basketball team whenever he can.

Seven is not just a number at Real Madrid. Until 2018, only true icons inherited it. It started with Raymond Kopa, a member of the legendary team led by Di Stéfano. After him, Amancio inherited it, scoring 119 goals in 344 games in white with the number seven on his jersey.

He was succeeded by Juanito, the greatest darling of Real fans, the architect of great European turnarounds and perhaps the greatest heartthrob in Real’s history. To this day, his name is still chanted in the seventh minute at the Bernabéu.

It was then taken over by Emilio Butragueño, the player who gave his name to La Quinta del Buitre, the best generation of Spanish players in the club’s history. He wore the seven on his back his entire career and scored 171 goals in 463 games.

Raúl González Blanco inherited the mythical seven from Butragueño, right after his first season in the first team. The player nicknamed “Eterno capitán” needs no further introduction, one of the club’s biggest icons with the most games in the white jersey – 741.

Like Raúl, Ronaldo had to wait a year for his seven. In fact, when he arrived at the Bernabéu, it was Raúl who still had it on his back. But after a year, he went to Schalke and Ronaldo switched from the nine to the seven and made it even more unique.

With this number on his jersey, Ronaldo shot up the club’s historical records, became the top scorer with 451 goals in 450 games and the iconic CR7 brand is known all over the world.

After the Portuguese, Mariano and Hazard took the number seven, taking some of the shine off the mythical number. But now it is in good hands again and Vinícius should build on his predecessors.

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