RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil -- After a few days of reflection, Luis Suarez acknowledged what millions saw on TV -- he did bite an opponent during a game at the World Cup. In addition, he said hes sorry about it, and promised it will never happen again. Ending a unified protest in Uruguay by everyone from Suarez to teammates, fans and even the countrys president that the star striker had done nothing wrong, the Liverpool player on Monday offered an apology to Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. "I deeply regret what occurred," Suarez said in a statement posted on Twitter. "I apologize to Giorgio Chiellini and the entire football family. ... I vow to the public that there will never again be another incident like (this)." The Uruguay striker was banned for four months from all football by FIFA for biting the shoulder of Chiellini during the teams 1-0 win over Italy in their group-stage game in Brazil. The incident was not spotted by the referee, and the Uruguayans victory sent them through to the second round while Italy was eliminated. It is the third time Suarez has been banned for biting an opponent, after similar incidents at both Ajax in the Dutch league and Liverpool in the English Premier League. Chiellini responded on Twitter shortly after Suarez posted his statement, accepting the apology. "Its all forgotten," the Italian wrote in English. "I hope FIFA will reduce your suspension." Suarez had originally denied wrongdoing in a written response to FIFA, and had been staunchly defended by teammates and Uruguayan officials. His apology could be taken into account by FIFA when it considers an appeal of the ban, which the Uruguayan federation has said it will file. "After several days of being home with my family, I have had the opportunity to regain my calm and reflect about the reality of what occurred during the Italy-Uruguay match," the statement said. "(The) truth is that my colleague Giorgio Chiellini suffered the physical result of a bite in the collision he suffered with me." Suarez was also suspended from Uruguays next nine international matches -- the first of which was a 2-0 loss to Colombia in the round of 16 on Saturday. Suarez had already returned home to Uruguay by then, and has received an outpouring of support from Uruguayan fans and even the countrys president, who blasted FIFA over the ban. President Jose Mujica referred to FIFA as "bunch of old sons of whores" as he welcomed Uruguays team back from the World Cup on Sunday. He also referred to FIFAs stiff ban as "fascist," though he said that Suarez could have been sanctioned with a lesser sentence. Suarez was named the player of the year in the Premier League this past season after scoring 31 goals to lead Liverpool to a second-place finish. He led the league in scoring despite missing the first five games of the season for serving the last part of a 10-game ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during the previous campaign. Liverpool has yet to comment on the World Cup biting incident. Robinson Cano Jersey . - Robert Griffin III has a sprained throwing shoulder that limited him in practice Wednesday as the Washington Redskins prepared for their season finale against the Dallas Cowboys. Ichiro Suzuki Jersey .C. -- The Steve Smith era in Carolina is over. http://www.marinersrookiestore.com/Marin...ly-Kids-Jersey/. -- Masahiro Tanaka knows that first appearance in a spring training game for the New York Yankees will be scrutinized. Edwin Diaz Jersey . Catch the game on TSN starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. You can also listen to all the action live on TSN 1050 at 7pm et. The Knicks are two games behind the Atlanta Hawks for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference race. James Paxton Jersey . Off-Season Game Plan examines a team facing some challenging times as GM Bryan Murray tries to put together a roster for next season. Perhaps the first challenge facing Murray is that its expected he will be moving out Jason Spezza, a premier point producer who is about to enter the final year of his contract.CHICAGO -- Reliever Mitchell Boggs and the Chicago White Sox have agreed to a $1.1 million, one-year contract. A 29-year-old right-hander, Boggs helped St. Louis win the 2011 World Series title and was 4-1 with a 2.21 ERA in 78 relief appearances for the Cardinals in 2012. He took over as the closer at the start of last season after Jason Motte got hurt, walked 15 in 14 2-3 innings as he converted two of five save chances. Boggs was traded to Colorado in early July and bouncedd between the majors and three minor league teams.dddddddddddd He wound up with an 0-3 record and 8.10 ERA in 27 appearances for St. Louis and Colorado. He joins a new-look White Sox bullpen that includes Ronald Belisario and Scott Downs. Closer Addison Reed was traded to Arizona in December. To make room on the 40-man roster, Chicago sent right-hander Deunte Heath outright to Triple-A Charlotte. Heath will be a non-roster invitee to spring training. ' ' '