The Houston Oilers were the first to retire from the NFL.
-- Sterlo Crowe
Travis Lee - March 31, 1998
1
Michael Jordan did play for the Chicago Bulls, but he retired in 1998.
The only uniform number of a Texas Rangers player that has been retired is Nolan Ryan's #34, which was retired by the team on Sept. 15, 1996. In 1997, all major league teams retired uniform #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play major league baseball.
The first number in professional sports to be retired was the number 1. It was worn by Ray Flaherty of the New York Giants football team, and was retired in 1935.
The first Giants jersey to be retired, which was also the first jersey ever retired by an NFL team, was the #1 of offensive/defensive end Ray Flaherty in 1935.
On July 4, 1939, Lou Gehrig became the first Major League Baseball player to have his number, 4, retired by his team. Since then, over 120 other people have had their numbers retired. The Yankees were the first team to retire a number. Number 4, Lou Gehrig was the first player to have his number retired
Peja Stojaković retired after playing in 2011 for the Dallas Mavericks. He took a management position with the Sacramento Kings, the team on which he played the longest (1998-2006).
The Cincinnati Red Stockings were the first team in MLB history
The last team he played for before he retired was the Boston Celtics
Mario Lemieux
Bruce Smith's jersey number (54) was the first to be retired by the Minnesota Golden Gophers football team, in 1977.