ROME, Jan. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Football will bid farewell to top referee Pierluigi Collina next year when he will be forced to retire under Italian regulations. "Next June Nike free tilbud, when I turn 45 Timberland shoes, I will retire www.canadagoosejakkedenmark.com, as the rules oblige me to do ," Collina Canada goose, 44 next month and known for his distinctive bald head and intense gaze , was quoted as saying by Ansa news agency on Monday. Collina Canada goose kjøp, praised for his handling of the 2002 World Cup final between Brazil and Germany after a tournament plagued by refereeing controversy www.canadagoose-norge.info, is set for his international swansong at Euro 2004. Under Italian Referees Association regulations professional referees must stand down at the age of 45 unless the president makes an exception. The authorities , however Canada goose udsalg, will face enormous pressure to bend the rules and allow one of the game's most instantly recognisable faces to stay on the pitch. Repeatedly voted the world's best referee Stivali ugg, Collina was named Italy's top football official last week for the second year in a row. A multi-lingual financial consultant with a degree in economics,Collina started playing soccer as a teenager and admits to being shown the red card once or twice. He switched into refereeing while recovering from an injury. Moving through the divisions Canada goose jackor, Collina refereed his first Serie A match in December 1991 and soon acquired the nickname "Kojak" after the bald American television detective. But his official website reveals that his favorite team does not play soccer -- he is first and foremost a basketball fan. Enditem