San Francisco 49ers popularly known as 49ers are an American professional gridiron football team based in Santa Clara, California.

They play in the National Football League as members of the National Football Conference (NFC) West Division. The team was established on June 4. 1944 and is currently the 10th oldest franchise in the NFL after they became members in 1949.

The 49ers are 5 times Super Bowl champions and 4 of these victories took place in the 1980s. The period of the 1980s was when the team had a number of its Hall of Famers playing for them. In other words, the Hall of Famers of the 1980s is responsible for the team winning 4 Super Bowl cups.

The team has also been division champions 21 times between 1970 and 2021 thereby making them one of the successful teams in NFL history.

These good stories of how successful the club has been since inception tell a story of how some individuals have contributed immensely for the good of the team. What then has been their reward?

For some of the players who stood firm with the team through thick and thin, they have had their numbers retired. Retiring of numbers of sports personnel is a way of honoring the individual who possessed/ wore a particular number on their jersey for a time.

How many numbers have the San Francisco 49ers retired?

The San Francisco 49ers have retired 12 numbers; one of the highest of a team aside from the Chicago Bears and New York Giants who have 14 jerseys retired apiece.

What are the Retired numbers?

The retired numbers are;

Retired Number  Name Of Player, Position      Year Played.

  • 8                                 Steve Young, QB                              1987- 1999
  • 12                                 John Brodie, QB                             1957-1973
  • 16                               Joe Montana, QB                              1979-1992
  • 34                               Joe Perry, RB                                     1948-1960, 1963
  • 37                              Jimmy Johnson, CB                             1961-1976
  • 39                              Hugh McElhenny, RB                         1952-1960
  • 42                              Ronnie Lott, S                                     1981-1990
  • 70                              Charlie Krueger, DT                             1959-1973
  • 73                              Leo Nomellini, T                                  1950-1963
  • 79                              Bob St. Clair, T                                    1953-1963
  • 80                               Jerry Rice, WR                                     1985-2000
  • 87                               Dwight Clark, WR                               1979-1987

With such a huge number of retired numbers for the team, during training camp, there are issues with the numbers to be worn by players on either opposite. This has caused the CEO of San Francisco 49ers to say that the days of the organization’s retired jerseys are likely over. He hopes to honor great players of the team in various ways going forward.