Football

Gianluigi Buffon announced his 17-year career as a Juventus player is to come to an end in an emotional press conference at the Allianz Stadium, Turin.

Buffon, 40, leaves the club after captaining them to their seventh successive Serie A title, their ninth overall.

The former Parma goalkeeper told the assembled media that he will make his final Juventus appearance against Hellas Verona on Saturday.

"Saturday will be my final match for Juventus and to end this journey with two cups and with the president and the entire Bianconeri world by my side, will be very special," said Buffon.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria have maintained their 47th position in the latest FIFA world ranking.

The latest ranking was released on Thursday on FIFA’s official website.

Also in Africa, the World Cup-bound Super Eagles remain sixth.

The Colombian Football Federation announced on Monday a provisional list of 35 players for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™. Included in the squad are 11 veterans of the 2014 World Cup, among them are James Rodriguez, David Ospina, Carlos Sanchez, Abel Aguilar and Cristian Zapata.

Nigeria Professional Football League hotshot Junior Lokosa is overwhelmed by his invitation to the Super Eagles for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, chairman of Kani Pillars FC, Alhaji Muhammad Tukur Babangida, has revealed to CompleteSports.

Babangida said Lokosa who arrived in Sofia, the Bulgarian capital city on Tuesday, was overjoyed when the news of his call-up to national team reached him through his agent.

The Saudi Football Federation has banned referee Fahad al-Mirdasi for life over bribery and urged FIFA to remove him from the pool of referees for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Mirdasi was suspended for offering to take a bribe to influence the outcome of a match, the federation’s disciplinary and ethics committee said late Tuesday.

The 32-year-old is one of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent referees, having earned a FIFA badge in 2011 and officiating at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016 and the Confederations Cup in Russia in 2017.

Arsenal star Mesut Ozil, Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos and Bayern Munich trio Mats Hummels, Thomas Mueller and Jerome Boateng are part of Germany’s 27-man provisional list for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

The list was confirmed by FIFA on their verified Twitter handle on Tuesday.

Long-term injury absentee Manuel Neuer of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund’s Marco Reus, who missed the 2014 World Cup due to injury, are included.