Ready to help kick malaria out of Africa? Then make sure to check out United Against Malaria’s (UAM) new website.

Soccer stars, foundations, governments, and corporations are all joining forces ahead of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa to unite against malaria. And don’t forget the NGOs, too, including UAM’s founding partners ONE, PATH, Malaria No More, Roll Back Malaria, Comic Relief, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Population Services International and the United Nations Foundation, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. By leveraging soccer—one of the most popular sports in the world—UAM aims to raise global awareness and renew worldwide commitment to ending malaria.

So what can you do to join in the cause? Visit the UAM website and sign the virtual soccer ball to show your support. Read all the latest news on the UAM blog (don’t miss the behind-the-scenes post with U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team Captain Landon Donovan), play the “World Cup Soccer Challenge: Kick Malaria” game on Facebook, even add a UAM twibbon (a colorful football) to the bottom of your twitter avatar. Check out their new site today!

On Tuesday night, ONE staff joined a gigantic malaria vector to enjoy a “mosquito mojito” and to support United Against Malaria in kicking malaria out of Africa.

United Against Malaria is a partnership of NGOs, footballers, governments, corporations, foundations, and individuals who are joining forces to fight malaria in the lead-up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. UAM’s goal is to build support for the 2010 target of universal access to mosquito nets and malaria medicine in Africa. Clyde Simms, a soccer player from DC United, was there to sign the United Against Malaria soccer ball to show his commitment and unite with individuals across the world who share the goal of reducing deaths from malaria to near zero by 2015. Participants could also donate $10 to distribute a life-saving bed net to someone who needs it.

ONE is very proud to be a founding partner of United Against Malaria. You can support United Against Malaria and its partners and sign the “virtual soccer ball” to unite against malaria at www.unitedagainstmalaria.org!

-Leah Moriarty

A new campaign to combat malaria is launching in the UK today – and ONE is part of it. United Against Malaria brings us together with Comic Relief and Malaria No More as well as a team of football stars, celebrities, foundations and corporations. The campaign is setting its sights on the FIFA World Cup next July and the goal is for everyone in Africa to have access to mosquito nets and malaria nets by 2010.

We’ve chosen today to start talking about the campaign as it’s the day that the England football team play Croatia in a World Cup qualifying match. There will be a more formal launch in November.

-Helen Palmer

Gabrielle Fitzgerald of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is on the ground in Uganda with Dr. Margaret Chan, Mr. Ray Chambers, and Dr. Tachi Yamada. She reports back on their fifth day:

Our last event of the trip was the kick-off of Uganda’s United Against Malaria campaign – a coalition of local business, football and non-governmental organizations who have come together to raise awareness about malaria.

Dr. Tachi Yamada of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation joined Minister of Health Stephen Mallinga and representatives from MTN and Uganda’s football community in launching the campaign.

Edgar Watson said, “Football is a game that is so dear to my heart. It therefore gives me so much joy to see that the United Against Malaria campaign is using the football platform to fight malaria. I pledge to hold the football torch, as we, the coaches and footballers in Uganda all rally behind United Against Malaria. I do this for the children and for the future.”

Uganda is United Against Malaria!

Gabrielle Fitzgerald, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Check out this blog post from our friends at Malaria No More

Recently, I traveled to Los Angeles for the first match of FC Barcelona’s summer tour, played against Major League Soccer’s LA Galaxy. Although the teams were competitors on the field (Barça won 2-1 after an intense match!) they came together to show their commitment to a common cause: the fight against malaria.

On Friday evening, the LA Galaxy and AEG hosted a dinner to welcome FC Barcelona to the States and highlighted soccer’s leadership in ending malaria deaths through the United Against Malaria campaign.

FC Barcelona and Major League Soccer have battled malaria off the field for a long time. Now, with the same “goal” of kicking malaria off the field for good, soccer teams and malaria organizations are teaming up for United Against Malaria, an initiative to shine a spotlight on the malaria crisis in Africa during the lead-up to the 2010 World Cup—the first World Cup on African soil.

At the event, United Against Malaria welcomed Tim Leiweke (President and CEO of AEG), Don Garber (Commissioner of Major League Soccer) and Joan Laporta (President of FC Barcelona) as United Against Malaria Champions. In addition, LA Galaxy superstar Landon Donovan, considered the best soccer player ever produced by the United States, announced that he will be a Captain, or leading spokesman of the United Against Malaria team. Tim and Don surprised everyone by announcing a $25,000 donation to the fight against malaria as a welcome gift to FC Barcelona.

During the match, a United Against Malaria video played for the crowd of 90,000 and FC Barcelona wore special United Against Malaria jerseys onto the field to help spread the word.

The soccer community is rallying to end malaria deaths—will you join the winning team?

United Against Malaria Presentation from United Against Malaria on Vimeo.

-Emily Bergantino, Malaria No More

Photos by Michael Stobe/Stobephotos

This weekend, I had the chance to represent Malaria No More and United Against Malaria—a new partnership of organizations, including ONE!, committed to fighting malaria—at the Nutmeg youth soccer tournament in Wilton, CT. On Sunday, Congressman Jim Himes (Connecticut-4), a member of the Congressional Malaria Caucus, joined 1,000 Connecticut kids to show his support for United Against Malaria.

While cheering on the youth players, Congressman Himes underscored the importance of supporting the ongoing fight against malaria, saying, “The chance to win a victory against malaria shows how we can reach ambitious goals both on the soccer field and in the global effort to improve health care worldwide.”

We couldn’t agree more! MNM had a great time hosting the United Against Malaria Speed Shot Contest, where players took time out from their team competition to test their individual skill, learn about malaria and help score against the disease! Families stopped by to donate a $10 lifesaving mosquito net and to learn more about United Against Malaria, and kids got the opportunity to take a shot and see how fast they could kick a soccer ball into a bed net goal. Winners in each age category received two tickets to a Major League Soccer game and United Against Malaria soccer jerseys.

Congressman Himes’s enthusiasm for the campaign was matched by the tournament organizers who saw the United Against Malaria campaign: “We are so proud to help raise awareness about malaria in the community and show our kids how they can help kids in Africa,” remarked Wilton Soccer Association President Andy Hoffman. “United Against Malaria shows just how important teamwork is to defeating malaria for once and for all.”

One thing was for sure: regardless of the final score, players at the Nutmeg tournament won a major victory against malaria. We hope that youth soccer players across the country will join us and the malaria community in standing United Against Malaria and help send malaria off the field for good!

-John Logsdon, Malaria No More