Bengaluru, Mar 24 (IANS): India captain Sunil Chhetri has been picked by FIFA along with 28 past and present football icons to spread an awareness campaign to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

FIFA and the World Health Organization (WHO) have teamed up to combat the coronavirus (COVID -19) by launching a new awareness campaign as football calls on all people around the world to follow five key steps to stop the spread of the disease.

"FIFA and its President Gianni Infantino have been actively involved in passing the message against this pandemic since the very beginning," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the virtual launch of the campaign at WHO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

"Be it through campaigns or funding, FIFA has stood up to the coronavirus, and I am delighted that world football is supporting WHO to kick out the coronavirus. I have no doubt with this type of support that together we will win," he said in a FIFA release.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said: "We need teamwork to combat the coronavirus. FIFA has teamed up with WHO because health comes first. I call upon the football community worldwide to join us in supporting this campaign to pass the message even further. Some of the greatest players to have played the beautiful game have put their names to the campaign and are united in their desire to pass the message to kick out COVID-19."

The 28 players, who will be involved in the video campaign to be published in 13 languages, include the likes of Argentina and FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi and World Cup winners like German Philip Lahm, Spain's Iker Casillas and Spanish defender Carles Puyol.