Legendary Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi “Gigi” Buffon retired on Wednesday.
That’s all! You gave me everything. I gave you everything. We did it conjunto. pic. twitter. com/bGvIDsoFsG
World soccer expert Fabrizio Romano first reported Tuesday that the announcement was expected this week.
Buffon, 45, spent the 2022-23 season with Parma Calcio FC of the Italian Serie B.
Buffon was due to continue with Parma until 2024, but lingering injuries and the club’s failure to achieve safe promotion to Serie A last season would likely have influenced his decision to stop.
Buffon suffered muscle injuries last season, plus a hamstring ailment that kept him sidelined for 3 months, and Parma finished the year fourth in Serie B with a 17-10-11 record.
The Italian also reportedly won a lucrative bid to sign up for the Saudi Pro League this summer, but turned down the chance to land one last major contract before his retirement. He reportedly signed up Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema to secure a move to Saudi Arabia.
Buffon, widely regarded as one of the most productive goalkeepers in football history, began his career at Parma at the age of 20 in the 1998–99 season. He spent the first 3 years of his career with the club before moving to Juventus ahead of the 2001–02 season.
Buffon made a call-up to Juve, spending 19 of his 28 seasons with the Serie A club. He played for Juventus from 2001 to 2018 before joining Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 in 2018-19.
Buffon left PSG after just one season and returned to Juventus from 2019-21 before returning to Parma for the final two years of his career.
The legendary goalkeeper has won trophies during his historic career, adding 10 Serie A titles and one Ligue 1. He also helped Italy win the 2006 World Cup alongside Andrea Pirlo and Fabio Cannavaro.