Dubai: Some of the top stars from yesteryears from all over the world will join local talent in a charity football match to be held at the Al Shabab Club in Dubai on April 28.

The stars will come together for the benefit of funding open heart surgeries for African children.

Some of the participating stars include former players like Amunike, Hazim Imam, Mutiu Adepoju, Rasheed Yekini, Victor Ikpeba and Finidi George.

The stars from the region who have already confirmed to attend the match are Talal Al Yousuf, Sami Al Jaber, Jafai Rashed, Hitham Mustafa along with the UAE talents such as Subait Khater, Esmail Mattar, Mohammad Al Enazi, Salem Al Khabori, Faisal Khalil, Esmail Rashed and Abdul Aziz Al Anbari.

The exhibition match is being organised by Dubai-based Splendid Sports Events along with the Royal Derby Child Care Foundation and Al Shabab Club.

The event is being held under the patronage of Shaikh Saeed Bin Maktoum Al Maktoum, with support from international bodies like Unicef and the Red Crescent.

The match will be followed by a gala dinner on April 29.

Money raised from the event will be managed by the Red Crescent, to help underprivileged children in Africa. The NMC group of hospitals in Dubai will conduct open heart surgeries for African adults and children unable to afford medical care.

Helping hand

In addition to this, negotiations are in progress with an American hospital based in Dubai for open-heart surgery for a few teenagers.

The event also aims to raise funds to give a helping hand to the less privileged and children, particularly in Africa where there is a high level of poverty and for the more than 2,000 African children in need of open heart surgery to enable them to live.

"Al Shabab Club has been at the forefront of many charity and humanitarian efforts in the UAE, and events like this one gives us an opportunity to give something back to society," noted Mattar Surour, Managing Director of Al Shabab Club.

"Our endeavour at the Royal Derby Child Care Foundation is to make the world a better place through the power of football," said Onyebuchi Abia, Director of Planning and Strategy at the foundation.

"We hope to bring attention on the needs of underprivileged children in Africa," stated Ahmad Mohammad Khamis, Chief Executive of Splendid Sports Events.

Tickets for the match will be available from malls, schools and on the internet starting from April 8.