july2018

SEXY GLAM

MAGAZINE - JULY 2018

o soccer legend Diego Maradona of Argenti-

na, “giving everything for the shirt” is a player’s motto.

In other words, the soccer jersey is everything a team

stands for.

A Numbers Game - What do the Numbers Mean?

In soccer’s earliest days you might have been just a

number. And you were lucky to be among the top 11.

But what did those numbers mean?

Numbers were placed on official soccer jerseys

so media, fans, and players themselves could dis-

tinguish one from another. Players were initially

numbered based on starting formation. Top players

were numbered 1-11 beginning with the goalkeep-

er. It worked kind of like baseball’s batter order, one

through nine. If you wore the number 12 or over, most

likely you were a soccer substitute. Over time, the

formation varied from one country to another. With

the influx of television and media making soccer more

visible and popular, numbers became associated with

certain players, which increased marketing of num-

bered soccer team jerseys. The first 11 players were

definitely in the lineup. In more recent decades impor-

tance assigned to a number is no longer limited to the

first 11 players. But one number stands alone, and

that is the “One” belonging only to the goalkeeper.

A brief overview of soccer jersey numbers and what

they stand for is as follows:

1. Goalkeeper

2. Right back - defender

3. Defender’s defender - center back

4. Lefty - defender or midfielder. The position

historically gets its name from being posi-

tioned at the left side of the field.

5. In the US, it’s the Center Half or Midfielder. In

England, it’s the Center Half or Defender.

6. Versatile position; In the US and Europe,

it’s the midfielder. In England, it’s the Center

Back. In Brazil, generally the Back, but all are

versatile.

7. Attacker, usually right wing. In the US national

team, it stands for Left Wing.