40 players confirmed for tsunami soccer match

Zurich:

Forty Europe-based soccer players were confirmed to play in a charity soccer match to raise money for victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami. Thierry Henry, Zinedine Zidane, David Beckham, Paolo Maldini and Patrick Vieira are among those included. All proceeds from the February 15 "Football for Hope" match at Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium will go to the Tsunami Solidarity Fund set up by FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation. FIFA's player of the year, Ronaldinho, and Europe's player of the year, Andriy Shevchenko, will captain the two sides. Of the 52 players invited, Brazilian stars Ronaldo and Adriano, Italians Roberto Baggio and Francesco Totti and Czech star Pavel Nedved have withdrawn. Ronaldinho's team will be coached by Carlos Alberto Parreira and Frank Rijkaard, while Marcello Lippi and Arsene Wenger will coach Shevchenko's team. (AP)