France and Real Madrid midfielder Zinedine Zidane said on Tuesday he will retire after the World Cup in Germany.

Zidane helped France win the 1998 World Cup on home soil and the 2000 European Championship. He was FIFA's World Player of the Year in 1998, 2000 and 2003.

"I am stopping for good and I am stopping everything," Zidane told Canal Plus television. "Most of all, I think it's my body. I told myself that I can't do another year."

Zidane, who had another year to run on his contract with Madrid, will turn 34 during the June 9-July 9 World Cup.

Zidane joined Madrid in 2001 from Juventus for a then-record fee of US$65 million. He led Madrid to the 2002 Champions League title, the 2002 European Super Cup and the 2003 Spanish league title.

But with the star-studded team without a trophy since, Zidane will play his last match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium on May 7 against Villarreal.

"I don't want to start a third year knowing that I won't be able to do better than I've done in the past," Zidane said. "I'm getting to an age where it is getting harder and harder."

He said he wanted to focus on the World Cup "my last objective" and give Madrid time to find a replacement.

Nicknamed "Zizou," he retired from the French team after it lost to Greece in the quarterfinals of the 2004 European Championship. But along with Claude Makelele and Lilian Thuram, Zidane returned to help France qualify for the 2006 World Cup.

Zidane, who has scored 28 goals in 99 games for France, has also played for Bordeaux and Cannes.

He will join Didier Deschamps, Thuram and Marcel Desailly as the only men to play 100 games for France if he stays fit. He will achieve the milestone at home against Mexico on May 27.

Zidane scored on two headers in the 3-0 win in the 1998 World Cup final against Brazil at the Stade de France. In 2000, he scored a penalty as France beat Portugal in the semifinals to ultimately win its second European title.

However, Zidane carried an injury at the 2002 World Cup, as France became the first defending champion to exit in the tournament's first round. At Euro 2004, he was criticized for a lack of understanding with Thierry Henry, whom he has failed to create a goal for since the striker's debut in 1997.

France coach Raymond Domenech said he is "a little sad" at the prospect of Zidane's retirement.

"With his immense talent and many exploits, 'Zizou' has marked the history of French and international soccer for eternity," Domenech said. "I am convinced that the best page in his sporting history remains for him to write; winning a new World Cup with Les Bleus."

The European Union's anti-terror chief is confident the World Cup will be safe from terrorism.

"I am absolutely convinced that everything possible has been done and is being done," EU counterterrorism coordinator Gijs de Vries said in an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press.

NATO will have AWACS surveillance planes patrolling the skies over Germany during the June 9-July 9 tournament. Soldiers will be on standby with radiation and chemical warfare detection equipment. And the German government will reimpose national passport checks at borders to minimize the threat of terrorism.

On top of that, Europol, the EU's police investigations agency, is involved in coordinating intelligence-gathering and looking into terror threat assessments.

"Germany is in the lead with providing security and there is strong international cooperation to help the German government," de Vries said.

Widespread anti-terror precautions have been taken at major sports events in Europe since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. The 2004 Athens Olympics, the 2006 Turin Games and the 2004 European soccer championship in Portugal all took place without a hitch.

But De Vries warned against complacency.

"Fortunately, through good cooperation, we have been able to provide a very high level of security in the past," he said. "Again, there is never 100 percent guarantee that there cannot be an incident or a major attack. We always run that risk in a democracy."

Striker Jan Koller, sidelined since September with a knee injury, could be ready to play in the Czech Republic's World Cup opener against the United States on June 12.
Czech coach Karen Bruckner said Thursday that the Dortmund striker may still play in a Bundesliga game this season.

"He's optimistic about his participation at the World Cup," Bruckner said.

Koller was expected to be sidelined for at least eight months after tearing ligaments in his left knee during a Bundesliga match in September.

Koller's recovery is good news for Bruckner, who would have a problem replacing the 6-foot-7 (2.0 meter) striker.

"There's no other Koller," Bruckner said.

Koller has 40 goals in 66 internationals games, and nine goals in the Czech Republic's 2006 World Cup qualifying campaign.

Bruckner said three other players were still doubtful for the World Cup: Bordeaux midfielder Vladimir Smicer, Ajax defender Zdenek Grygera and striker Vratislav Lokvenc of Salzburg.

World Cup squads have to be named by May 15.

The Czechs play in Group E along with the United States, Ghana and Italy.

Tony Meola got his 100th cap. Now he and the rest of the U.S. hopefuls can only wait for coach Bruce Arena to choose the World Cup roster.
"For me, it was just a great night, and I did it with a great group of guys that really appreciated the first 99 as much as they appreciated tonight," the 37-year-old goalkeeper said. "They let me know about it all week."

Ben Olsen scored the tying goal in the 25th minute off a record-setting assist from Landon Donovan, Meola became the ninth U.S. player to reach 100 international appearances and the United States salvaged a 1-1 tie against Jamaica on Tuesday night.

It was the final exhibition game before Arena settles on the 23 players he will take to Germany this summer. A day earlier, he told the team not to worry about making the final cut. He wanted them simply to have fun.

"It's getting down to the nitty gritty," defender Chris Albright said. "I mean, obviously you enjoy playing the game, but everybody's thinking about making the team. I just tried to give it everything I had."

Before the kickoff, Meola was honored as the ninth U.S. player to reach 100 caps - soccer's term for international appearances. He was the starting goalkeeper at the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, and the No. 3 goalkeeper four years ago.

Meola hadn't played for the national team since May 16, 2002, and his addition to the roster was seen largely as a symbolic gesture by Arena. Barely four minutes into the game, it appeared Meola might be in for a long night when Jamaica took a 1-0 lead.

"We started slow. Give them credit, they came at us," Meola said. "After about 15 or 20 minutes, I thought we picked up the pace and played fairly well. All in all, I thought it was a good performance."

Donovan got his 23rd career assist, moving him ahead of Los Angeles Galaxy teammate Cobi Jones for the most in national team history as the Americans avoided losing for the first time in 17 games against Jamaica (9-0-8).

"Oh, that's right, I forgot about that," Donovan said when told of his record. "It was Cobi before, right? I got it in less caps, and I'll tell him this week. That's cool, man."

Albright had a couple of opportunities to put the Americans ahead, but goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts came through each time with fine saves. Both came off headers following a free kick by Donovan, with Ricketts narrowly deflecting the ball away from the goal each time.

"He was letting balls go through his hands all night, and he makes the save on a couple of headers," Albright said. "You've just got to take your hat off to him."

Albright certainly needed to play well, as he likely is one of the players hoping for a spot on the World Cup roster. The others who appear questionable are Olsen, Steve Ralston, Eddie Johnson, Pat Noonan, Josh Wolff, Brian Ching and John O'Brien.

Ralston limped off with a groin injury in the second half, and O'Brien, who has been hampered by a similar ailment, made his first appearance for the national team since August.

Arena will announce the U.S. roster May 2, and it will be finalized May 15.

"We were able to use this game as an opportunity to see some players," Arena said. "The part that I felt was valid was that we watched our players have to deal with coming from behind, being down a goal. I thought they responded pretty well, from the 25th minute mark on."

Jamaica took a surprising lead on a great effort by Teafore Bennett. He outran defender Frankie Hejduk to take Jermaine Hue's pass near the box, and Meola was caught out of position.

He couldn't get to the ball quickly enough, and Bennett used his left foot to put it in.

"The first 15 or 20 minutes, we decided we were going to press and try to score," Bennett said. "We worked hard, and it paid off."

The United States came back to tie it on a brilliant move from Donovan. After Noonan was fouled, Donovan wisely took the free kick before the Reggae Boyz were ready.

"I think too often we let teams off the hook," Donovan said. "When you get fouled, there's a lot of times you can put the ball down and play, and teams are kind of walking back. At this level, it can make a difference."

He sent the ball to Olsen, who carried it in alone before taking a shot.

It ricocheted off the left hand of Ricketts and into the net, sending the capacity crowd of more than 8,000 at the SAS Soccer Park in suburban Raleigh into a frenzy. Arena will bring his team back next month to train for the World Cup.

After Chivas USA's season opening 3-0 win against Real Salt Lake on Sunday, a familiar face walked in and around the club's locker room at The Home Depot Center.
U.S. international John O'Brien talked with national team manager Bruce Arena, and then ducked into the locker room while the Chivas USA's current players spoke with the media.

Chivas USA coach Bob Bradley said "there are a few details to square away" and that the club remained optimistic that O'Brien would join it soon.

"We're hopeful that we can put the last touches on that," Bradley said. "We all know that John is an excellent player that I think would be a great addition in terms of the way he plays and the things that he does on the field."

Chivas USA President and Co-Owner Antonio Cue said that a deal could happen, but likely not on Monday.

A Southern California native, O'Brien joined Dutch powers Ajax as a teenager and has played his entire professional career in the Netherlands. A year ago, O'Brien left Ajax for fellow Eredivisie side ADO Den Haag. Injuries, however, have kept O'Brien off the field for much of the last three years.

A key member of the USA's 2002 World Cup team, O'Brien figures to be in the mix for a 2006 World Cup roster spot. Having U.S. and Mexican internationals playing alongside each other is something Cue said has been one of his goals.

"I said when I started last year that one day I would love to have a lot of the players from the Mexican national team playing in Chivas and a lot of the players from the U.S. national team playing in Chivas," Cue said. "That could be something very unique."

If O'Brien joins the club, Chivas USA could have one player on each of the Mexican and U.S. World Cup teams. Claudio Suarez, who made his Chivas USA debut Sunday, was called into Mexico's provisional 26-man World Cup squad.

"We'll miss them, if that happens, but we'll be always very proud of that and very helpful of that for both national teams because in the end that's something those guys have deserved, they have earned it and this team will continue to work hard," Cue said.