{
  "id": 11176039,
  "title": "Rafael Leão handed Portugal’s No. 7 shirt after Ronaldo’s departure",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/rafael-leao-handed-portugals-no-7-shirt-after-ronaldos-departure-11176039",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-01T11:26:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch Nigeria",
    "slug": "punch-nigeria",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/rafael-leao-handed-portugals-no-7-shirt-after-ronaldos-departure/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "UEFA has officially announced that Rafael Leão will be donning Portugal's famous No. 7 jersey for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures following Cristiano Ronaldo's departure from the national team. Leão, currently playing as No. 17 for the Seleção, will switch to No. 7 for the matches against Denmark and Norway. This change was confirmed by UEFA and aligns with the regulations stipulating consecutive squad numbers without any gaps. Fábio Silva has been assigned Leão's previous number, 17. Ronaldo was substituted in Portugal's recent 2-1 win over Wales, his last appearance for the team. Portugal currently leads Group A4 with two victories and will face Denmark and Norway in their remaining group stage matches.",
  "summary": "Rafael Leão will wear Portugal’s iconic No. 7 jersey for the next two UEFA Nations League matches following Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from the camp. Read More: https://punchng.com/rafael-leao-handed-portugals-no-7-shirt-after-ronaldos-departure/",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "Cristiano Ronaldo unhappy after broken Portugal promise",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/cristiano-ronaldo-unhappy-after-broken-portugal-promise",
        "published": "2026-09-30T10:16:59.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Punch",
        "title": "Rafael Leão handed Portugal’s No. 7 shirt after Ronaldo’s departure",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/01/rafael-leao-handed-portugals-no-7-shirt-after-ronaldos-departure",
        "published": "2026-10-01T11:10:52.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}