ABU DHABI // Some of the world's best-known footballers will play on the lawns of the Emirates Palace hotel next month.
On February 7, hours before an awards ceremony for 2010's best sports stars, some of the biggest names in the game will play against each other in a seven-a-side game.
Sir Bobby Charlton and Franz Beckenbauer will be there to cheer on legends such as the French defender Marcel Desailly and Holland's Edgar Davids.
Sir Bobby and Beckenbauer played against each other in the 1966 World Cup final when England beat West Germany 4-2.
Teams for the 60-minute match have yet to be decided, but the players will include Thomas Berthold, who played 62 times for Germany, and Ronald de Boer, capped 67 times for Holland, including the 1994 and 1998 World Cups.
Fernando Couto (110 caps for Portugal) will be lining up alongside Steve McManaman (37 caps for England). McManaman played 274 times for Liverpool and 94 times for Real Madrid. Other player include Dwight York, Manuel Sanchis and Ivan Helguera.
Sir Bobby said that with the boom in sport across the Gulf, it was "fitting" that a "high-class football match" should be part of the awards event.
After the game, the players will watch the Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey host the 2011 Laureus World Sports Awards at Emirates Palace.
The athletes up for awards include the Formula One drivers' champion Sebastian Vettel and Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, with the winners picked by a panel of 46 renowned sportsmen and women.
Proceeds will go to the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, which supports community sports projects around the world.
