Italy forward Alessandro Del Piero believes that France are the favourites to win the World Cup final in Berlin on Sunday.

The Azzurri are most pundits' pick to emerge victorious, but Juventus ace Del Piero has tried to ease the pressure on his side and has also denied that the match-fixing allegations surrounding his club will have any effect on the outcome.

He told reporters: "They are favourites because they have Zidane, who is number one, and also because they have less stress than us.

"It seems to me that Italy and France are the most apt sides for the final.

"There will be a lot of Juve in the final because (Lilian) Thuram, (Patrick) Vieira and (David) Trezeguet are all playing at Juve.

"With Zidane I have also been very close, so there is a lot of respect between the two sides.

"It is impossible not to think about Juve's future but at the moment my priority is the final. I'll think about other things from Monday."