Football: Juventus to play Singapore Selection side at Sports Hub on Aug 16

Football: Juventus to play Singapore Selection side at Sports Hub on Aug 16

SINGAPORE - Italian football club Juventus will play a Singapore Selection side at the new National Stadium on Aug 16.


Get the full story from The Straits Times.

Here is the joint statement from Juventus and World Sport Group:

After a record breaking season, Juventus, the most successful Italian football club in history, will bring their classic and attacking style to Singapore on August 16 to play a Singapore Selection side made up of the Lions and foreign stars from the S-League at the country's new National Stadium located at the Singapore Sports Hub.

Organisers confirmed the match will go ahead after Antonio Conte's in form men ended their campaign by recording their 33rd win of the season – and 19th out of 19 at home - at the weekend. They beat Cagliari (3 - 0) to finish the year with 102 points which is a new league record. The previous record of 97 was set by Inter Milan in 2007.

Midfield genius Andrea Pirlo and Gianluigi Buffon, their inspirational captain and legendary goalkeeper, will both make the trip to the "Lion City" after representing Italy in the World Cup in June/July.

They were both instrumental in helping the "Azzurri" win the 2006 World Cup.

A full strength squad, who helped Juventus win their third successive Serie A title, will compete in Singapore including Argentinean Carlos Tevez and Italy's indomitable centre back Giorgio Chiellini, who has also been selected for Italy’s World Cup squad.

"Juventus is thrilled to be heading to Singapore, a place we have heard many great things about!" said Francesco Calvo, Commercial Director from Juventus.

"We are a proud club and having been formed in 1897 we are steeped in history. What a wonderful occasion it will be for us to compete at such a new venue and against what we expect will be a young and exciting Singapore team."

Juventus have been crowned winners' of the league, also known as the 'Scudetto', a total of 32 times and triumphed in the UEFA Champions League in 1985 and 1996.

"Juve", as they are more often called, have won 57 official titles on the national and international stage, more than any other Italian club. The club also boasts nine Italian cups, a record five national super cups, and eleven titles in confederation and inter-confederation competitions.

"What a treat this will be for local football fans following Singapore’s derby against auld rivals Malaysia the week before, on Aug 8. This is also a great opportunity for our Singapore Select team featuring our Lions and foreign stars from the S.League to play the current Serie A champions and their world-class players. We always relish the challenge of playing against some of the best players in the world and our team will be training hard to put in a good display in front of an anticipated huge crowd" said FAS spokesman Gerard Wong.

Juventus has a world-wide fan base of 250 million, a figure which is not surprising when you consider they have boasted players like Italian Alessandro Del Piero, Roberto Baggio, and Fabio Cannavaro and Frenchmen Zinedine Zidane and Michel Platini.

Juventus will also be playing a friendly in Australia on August 10 against an A-League All Stars team that will include Del Piero.

World Sport Group (WSG), Asia's leading sports marketing agency specialising in sports sponsorship, sports content and sports event management, is the event promoter.

Said Malcolm Thorpe, Vice President, Sports Development & Events, WSG: "We are delighted that Juventus have confirmed they will be able to play in Singapore. They are one of the greatest football teams in the game and so it is a privilege that they have chosen to play in Singapore."

The Juventus game will be part of a wealth of world class events that are helping to unveil Singapore's new National Stadium - part of the $1.3 billion Sports Hub project. The 35 hectare site will feature cutting-edge design at an inspirational location.

Situated at the edge of the Kallang Basin, next to Singapore's city centre, Sports Hub will offer elite and recreational sporting and entertainment facilities for the young and old.

This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.