David Beckham is supporting a global campaign to help raise awareness of the deadly impact of malaria. The father-of-four appears to be attacked by 10,000 mosquitoes in the new video, which was filmed by director Ridley Scott, and highlights how thousands of people still lose their lives to the disease each year.
The retired footballer is confined in a small glass box and "under attack" by a swarm of mosquitoes in the clip, which has been released as part of the So Millions Can Live campaign. The initiative aims to help to eradicate malaria and show that it can be prevented. "We can be the generation that ends it for good, malaria must die so millions can live," David says in the campaign video.
David Beckham is supporting a new campaign against malaria
An estimated 216 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide in 2016, leading to 445,000 deaths, according to figures released by the World Health Organisation (WHO). While this figure has dropped from 237 million cases in 2010, the organisation says that the fight against malaria has "stalled" in recent years, partly due to a lack of funding.
STORY: The Beckhams congratulate David on launch of his new soccer team
In a statement released to support the campaign, David said: "I've supported the malaria fight for over 15 years and it's been exciting to see the progress made to save lives, including millions of young children. As the mosquito film shows, these insects are annoying in places like the UK but in many parts of the world, a mosquito bite is terrifying and deadly, leading to malaria and the loss of a child's life every two minutes."
The So Millions Can Live campaign was filmed by Ridley Scott
He added: "This is totally unacceptable, especially when we know how to prevent and cure it. That's why I'm standing with the millions who live with this threat every day. I urge Commonwealth leaders to be ready to take bold action when they meet in London in April and to unite to stop this disease in its tracks."
