The CEO of the English club confirmed that the 22 of the 2003-born gem, now at Real Madrid, was not withdrawn on the occasion of his transfer to Dortmund, but was reserved for him in case of his return in the future…
Birmingham did not retire Jude Bellingham’s number 22 following his move to Borussia Dortumund. The English club has instead confirmed that the 22nd has been reserved for the English midfielder in case he one day decides to return to his origins…
Birmingham, Bellingham’s 22 was not withdrawn
Bellingham attended Birmingham’s youth teams since he was 8 years old. The English gem born in 2003 remained at the Blues for 9 years, always and everywhere wearing the number “22”. Jude opted for 22 for a particular reason. One of his coaches told him that he could play anywhere, such as “4”, “8” and “10”. The sum of these three numbers is 22.
The transfer of the then 16-year-old Bellingham to Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2020 for 23 million euros proved to be a historic transfer for the English club, as Jude had only played one season with the Blues’ first team. Paid 103 million euros in gold this summer, Real Madrid is enjoying Bellingham’s extraordinary impact at the start of the season: 5 goals in 4 games in La Liga which make him the top scorer in the Spanish league.
However, there is a backstory that needs to be explored thoroughly. Yes, because the story that Birmingham had decided to withdraw Bellingham’s “22” upon his sale to Borussia Dortmund is not true. And the confirmation comes directly from the CEO of the Blues, Dong Ren, to “Relevo”: “The press has misunderstood from day one. We will not withdraw his number, it has always been reserved for him. If one day he comes back, he will have his number 22 back“.
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