Three former Major League Soccer stars are joining some of the biggest names in the sport over the past decade to play in an Australian bushfire relief match at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium on May 23.
The match, which has the hashtag #FootballForFires, will help raise money and honor thousands of brave volunteer firefighters and Australian emergency service personnel.
All proceeds will go toward the restoration and improvement of area football clubs and facilities in fire-affected areas across Australia.
The match is a who’s who of some of the sports biggest names, including former Montreal Impact legend Didier Drogba, ex-Canadian great Dwayne De Rosario, who played for five MLS teams and won two MLS Cups each with the San Jose Earthquakes and the Houston Dynamo, and retired striker Alecko Eskandarian, who competed for D.C. United, Toronto FC, Real Salt Lake and Chivas USA.
They join the likes of David Trezeguet, Dwight Yorke, Claudio Marchisio and Emile Heskey among a group of growing legends.
“The thoughts of the entire football family have been with the victims of these terrible bushfires over the past few weeks,” Australian FFA chief executive officer James Johnson said in a statement. “We now have this important opportunity to harness the power of our global sport to raise funds to assist in the re-build of our local devastated communities, and honor the brave men and women who have put their own lies at risk during this unprecedented natural disaster.”
