Why Trent Alexander-Arnold Has Changed His Name for Real Madrid | OneFootball

It will be a summer of significant change for Trent Alexander-Arnold after he traded the comfort of Liverpool for the glitz of Madrid.

The 26-year-old has made the permanent switch to Real Madrid after an extraordinary career with his boyhood club and will now experience the greatest Spanish football has to offer. He will be playing with new clubmates in an entirely new league and country, with immense pressure never too far from view at the Santiago Bernabéu.

But there are other changes for Alexander-Arnold, too. The right back will be wearing a new number in Madrid white, while a new name will be plastered above it on the back of his shirt.

Here’s the latest on Alexander-Arnold’s change of name.

Why Has Trent Alexander-Arnold Changed His Name?

Alexander-Arnold has been forced to change number following his Madrid move. Due to La Liga rules stating that first-team players must wear a number between one and 25, the defender will not be able to take his trademark No.66 jersey—worn since breaking through at Liverpool—with him to the Spanish capital.

Instead, Alexander-Arnold will adopt the No.12 shirt, previously worn by the likes of Eduardo Camavinga and, most notably, Marcelo. He will be hopeful of enjoying even half the success the Brazilian full-back had during his time with Los Blancos.

The name on the back of his shirt will also change for 2025–26. Instead of his family name ‘Alexander-Arnold’, the England international has opted to simply have his first name ’Trent’. He has already changed his handle on Instagram from ‘@trentarnold66’ to ‘@trent’.

Quizzed on his decision during his introductory press conference, Alexander-Arnold insisted it was an ”easy” explanation.

”I’ve always found that when I’ve travelled to Europe, the whole ‘name’ situation confuses a lot of people—three names, double-barrelled,” he revealed. ”Alexander-Arnold, people call me Arnold, people call me Alexander, people call me Alex, people call me Trent... there’s a lot that goes on.

”I just thought let’s make it simple, let’s make it easy. Trent on the back, be known as Trent. That’s my name and what people will call me.”