On Saturday, July 3rd, in Cape Town, a few hours before Messi, Tevez, Müller and Klose fight it out in the semifinal of the 19th World Cup, life’s champions will come onto the pitch at Green Point to play a match like no other.

We’re talking about the UNITY CUP, which will feature Special Olympics athletes, world football legends and international celebrities. The Special Olympics team will comprise 16 players, among them Manolis Tambakakis from Greece. The match will last 20 minutes and will kick off at 15:00 (Greek time), two hours before the World Cup’s semifinal between Argentina and Germany.

Here’s a list of the celebrities and football legends that will take part in the match:

Christian Karembeu, vital player in the French team that won the 1998 World Cup

Alan Shearer, all-time top scorer of England’s Premier League

Clarens Seedorf, the only football player who has won the Champion’s League with three different teams (Ajax, Real Madrid, AC Milan)

Zangh Ziyi, internationally acclaimed Chinese film actress (Memoirs of a Geisha, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and Global Ambassador for the Special Olympics

Dikembe Mutombo, NBA legend, one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players of all time

Enrique Borja, famous football striker who played for Mexico’s national team in the 70s

Teófilo Cubillas, Peru’s most renowned football player

Kevin Keegan, one of England’s greatest football players

And also:

AC Roma’s Japanese striker Hidetoshi Nakata, former South Africa national team and Leeds United, Lucas Radebe, and Steve Sumner, former captain of the New Zealand national football team. South African President Jacob Zuma will also take to the field as captain of one of the two teams.

Manolis Tambakakis left for South Africa today. Joanna Despotopoulou, the President of the Organizing Committee of Athens 2011, made the following statement: “Manolis, ‘the 24th player of Greece’s national team at the World Cup’, as Hellenic Football Federation President Sofoklis Pilavios described him, will play a leading role in the Athens World Summer Games. His experience is unquestionable, having won a gold medal at the last Special Olympics in Shanghai in 2007, where he also won the title of top scorer.”

The match and the press conference that will follow will be transmitted live from the World Cup’s official network, FIFA TV, and through it to all owners of the TV rights, including the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation ERT SA.

The UNITY CUP is being held for the first time this year and from now on will be a fixture in the final phase of the World Cup. The game was co-organized by FIFA, Special Olympics International and Coca Cola.