20101207
africanews

Ivory Coast talisman Didier Drogba is to join top football stars Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane in the 8th Annual Match Against Poverty to be held on 14 December, at the Karaiskakis Stadium in Piraeus, Greece.

According to Goal.com, the match collection will be channeled into recovery efforts for the catastrophic disasters that hit Haiti and Pakistan this year.

"I always wanted to participate in the Match Against Poverty," Drogba, who was appointed as UNDP Goodwill Ambassador in 2007 was quoted as saying in www.undp.org

"This is the first year the English Premier League calendar allows me to be present. I am thrilled to be with Ronaldo, Zidane and many other players to help the people of Haiti and Pakistan, and contribute to the global fight against poverty."

UNDP will receive half of the match proceeds, which will be used to support the nearly 25 million people affected by the Haiti earthquake and Pakistan floods.

Funds from the 7th Annual Match Against Poverty, which took place in Lisbon, Portugal, in January, were used for a UNDP employment creation programme in Haiti.

Olympiacos Football Club, which hosts the event, will donate its share of proceeds to Argo, the Navy Union for parents of children with special needs, as well as to homeless and disadvantaged communities in Piraeus.

As in previous years, the Goodwill Ambassadors will mobilize their team from across Europe to take on an all-star team from Olympiacos in a friendly match.

Massimo Bussaca, a Swiss referee for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, has been confirmed as referee for the match.