Real Madrid ended with a months-long saga by announcing Kylian Mbappe on Monday. The move has sent the soccer community wild, as fans can’t wait to see how the Frenchman settles in at the Santiago Bernabeu.
But of course, what many of these supporters are already looking forward to is purchasing the striker’s shirt. Unfortunately, they’ll have to wait for a bit longer as the Merengue are not allowed to put it up for sale yet.
Real Madrid can’t sell Kylian Mbappe’s shirt yet because the player is legally under contract with Paris Saint-Germain until June 30. While the 25-year-old was entitled to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with any other club from January, Mbappe’s new employers cannot use his image until his PSG deal officially expires.
Los Blancos had all the right to announce the striker’s arrival for next season, but Kylian won’t be legally a Real Madrid player until next month. That’s why his new shirt will only be available for sale starting July 1st.
In fact, the 15x UEFA Champions League winners have already introduced their new kit for the 2024-25 season without Mbappe, who is preparing for Euro 2024 with the French national team.
Mbappe among names Real Madrid can’t print on shirts
While the Spanish giants cannot print Mbappe’s name as he belongs to PSG until the end of June, it looks like Real Madrid also have a blacklist on names that can be printed on their jerseys.
According to As, Madrid do not allow printing the names of club legends such as Alfredo Di Stefano, Puskas, Zidane, Casillas, Raul, Cristiano Ronaldo, or Sergio Ramos on their current kits.
Additionally, the names of those who shone for lifelong rivals Barcelona or Atletico Madrid are not allowed for printing either. Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Luis Suarez, Pique, Koke, Diego Simeone, and Lionel Messi are some of them.
Mbappe’s probable shirt number
While his shirt won’t be up for sale until July, it appears that Mbappe will be emulating Cristiano Ronaldo with his first jersey number at La Casa Blanca. According to Fabrizio Romano, Kylian will wear No. 9 at Real Madrid.
With Luka Modric staying for another year, No. 10 is not up for grabs yet, while No. 7 was given to Vinicius Junior last year. Ronaldo also started his Real Madrid story wearing No. 9, waiting for only one season to inherit No. 7 from Raul.