Gianluigi #Buffon (born January 28, 1978 in Carrara, Italy) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper active between 1995 and 2023.

Considered one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, he is one of the few players to have played more than 1,100 professional matches and holds the record for the most appearances in Serie A (648 matches played). His reflex stops, his leadership and his track record make him one of the best players of his generation.

Buffon made his debut in the #Italian championship with Parma where he won his first trophies including the UEFA Cup in 1999. Two years later, he joined Juventus for an amount of 52.9 million euros (record for a goalkeeper at the time) and became one of the best goalkeepers in the world. His nineteen seasons, interrupted by a stint at Paris Saint-Germain in 2018-2019 where he was crowned French champion, are marked in particular by ten #Serie A titles (two being canceled following the Calciopoli affair), four Italian Cups and three lost Champions League finals (2003, 2015 and 2017), one of the rare competitions missing from his record. He ends his career at his training club Parma in Serie B until 2023.

As an individual, Buffon is the first #goalkeeper to win the Footballer of the year award in Serie A and wins the one for his position twelve times, a record. He is also a member of the standard team of the #Champions League in several editions and wins the first prize The Best #FIFA Goalkeeper in 2017. In addition, he was elected the best IFFHS football goalkeeper of the year five times (a record shared with Iker #Casillas and Manuel #Neuer) and placed 2nd at the 2006 Ballon d'Or.

On the international scene, Gianluigi Buffon honors 176 selections under the shirt of the Squadra Azzura making him the most capped Italian and European player before being surpassed by the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo. He played in four European championships, losing in the final in 2012, and five consecutive World Cups — winning the supreme title in 2006 and the award for the best goalkeeper of the competition - but failed to qualify in 2018, the year when he retired from international football. Since 2023, he has been the head of delegation of the Italian team.

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