Zidane, Ronaldo set to star in charity match for Yolanda victims

After English football superstar David Beckham played ball with kids in Yolanda-stricken Tacloban, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) announced on Friday that there would still be efforts to raise money for the devastated province, including the 11th Match Against Poverty, highlighted by soccer legends Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo, on March 4.



“[T]wo-thirds of the funds raised from ticket sales and television rights will help communities affected by the biggest storm ever recorded globally to rebuild their lives in the Visayas regions of the Phillippines," said the release from UNDP.

The Frenchman Zidane and Brazilian Ronaldo, teammates at Real Madrid from 2002-2006 and sporting icons from their native countries, are goodwill ambassadors for UNDP and have used their celebrity status in the sport for the annual fundraising charity match since 2003.

Zidane and Ronaldo and their team of international football superstars will play the Bern professional football club, the BSC Young Boys and Friends, in Sweden.

In addition a documentary by Swiss filmmaker Michael Steiner which tells “the story of recovery in Visayas through the plight of local football players, many of whom have participated in UNDP’s emergency employment scheme" will also be released on match day. - Roehl Niño Bautista / AMD, GMA News