If a jersey is retired and an active player is still wearing it, the player is usually permitted to wear the number for his entire career as a player.

Jersey numbers retired by the National Hockey League's New York Islanders as of 2007 For example, the number 58 was retired in 2018 by the Vegas Golden Knights hockey team in honor of the 58 victims killed in the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. In some cases, a team may decide to retire a number in honor of tragedies involving the team's city or state. Similarly, the Sacramento Kings and Orlando Magic retired number 6 in honor of their fans, the ' sixth man'. Some teams have also retired number 12 in honor of their fans, or the ' twelfth man'. The first number officially retired by a team in a professional sport was that of ice hockey player Ace Bailey, whose number 6 was retired by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1934. Retired jerseys are often referred to as ' hanging from the rafters' as they are, literally, put to hang in the team's home arena. Some sports that retire team numbers include baseball, cricket, ice hockey, basketball, American football, and association football. Such an honor may also be bestowed on players who had highly memorable careers, died prematurely under tragic circumstances, or have had their promising careers ended by serious injury.

Once a number is retired, no future player from the team may wear that number on their uniform, unless the player so-honored permits it however, in many cases the number cannot be used at all. Retiring the number of an athlete is an honor a team bestows upon a player, usually after the player has left the team, retires from the sport, or dies. Numbers retired by the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL, displayed at the Joe Louis Arena in December 2015

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