Across the globe, the race is on to qualify for the 2010 World Cup. Soccer teams representing countries across Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas are competing to be one of the 32 participating squads that will gather in South Africa next summer for the chance at the world title.

As the teams battle it out on the field to qualify this summer, working on their chemistry and honing their lineups along the way, ONE is also suiting up—and for a very formidable, versatile and talented group of players (if we may say so).

The team that ONE is joining will be made up of some of the best soccer players in the world, as well as celebrities, leading NGOs, foundations, corporations and government officials. But rather than hoist the World Cup Trophy, our squad’s goal is a little different. We want to beat malaria.

The team is called “United Against Malaria,” and this new global partnership kicked off today in South Africa at the World Economic Forum on Africa’s annual meeting. Kofi Annan helped make the announcement in an event in Cape Town.

By leveraging the 2010 World Cup—an important moment, not just for soccer fans, but for Africa itself—United Against Malaria aims to catalyze the world to reach the 2010 goal of universal access to mosquito nets and malaria medicine in Africa, a crucial first step to reaching the international target of reducing malaria deaths to near zero by 2015.

Like soccer, United Against Malaria will have a presence across the globe. In the United States and other donor countries, the team will work to strengthen political and public will to increase malaria programming and funding (and that’s where ONE members come in—more on that later).

In Africa, the team will work with governments to strengthen political commitment to prioritize malaria control, and to increase consistent, appropriate utilization of prevention tools like bed nets and malaria treatment. And as you can tell from the accompanying pictures, the campaign has already kicked off in Africa. United Against Malaria was on the ground this past Sunday for the first time on the continent, raising awareness about the effort with the crowd at the recent World Cup qualifier match between Ghana and Mali in Bamako, Mali. (For those keeping score, Ghana won, 2-0.)

The team is still coming together. Joining ONE in starting this ambitious campaign is Comic Relief, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Malaria No More, PATH, Population Services International, the Roll Back Malaria Partnership and the United Nations Foundation, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

We will have more big signups and teammates to announce in the months ahead—including some big stars from both sport and entertainment. But most importantly, the team will need you. We’ll need your voice, energy and commitment to help raise awareness and build the political and public will to tackle this disease once and for all. There are no tryouts; just a belief that in the next five years, deaths from malaria should and must end.

The United Against Malaria team is shaping up nicely. Now we need you. Get in the game early by visiting www.unitedagainstmalaria.com today.

As the 2010 World Cup approaches, stay tuned to the ONE blog for more updates on the United Against Malaria team.

-Steve Wilson