Roger Federer, Bill Gates to team up for Africa charity game

Roger Federer, the 18-time Grand Slam champion, and Bill Gates, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, will team up in a doubles match on April 29 to support children's education in Africa. The one-set exhibition match at Key Arena in Seattle will pit Federer and Gates against American John Isner and a surprise celebrity partner.

Prior to the doubles match, Federer will also play a one-on-one match against Isner as part of the event that marks the fourth "March for Africa" day for the Roger Federer Foundation. The charitable organisation has raised nearly US$29 million (AU$38 million) since its inception to support children's education in six African countries and Switzerland, the home country of Federer. According to USA Today, proceeds (ticket money, sponsorship fees, etc.) from the Apr. 29 event will go toward the Roger Federer Foundation.

Federer said in a statement: “I believe in the power of people. We know that a good education is a decisive factor to empower children by allowing them to take their future into their own hands. With my foundation, we want to provide one million children with the opportunity for a quality education by the end of 2018. The Match for Africa 4 in Seattle will help us reach our ambitious goals. I am very grateful for this opportunity to collaborate with Bill Gates, who in my opinion is the world’s leading philanthropist.”

Gates, a personal friend of Federer, is often recognised as the most influential philanthropist in the world. Recently, Gates played tennis with fellow billionaire Richard Branson to raise funds for the Gates Foundation. “I’m a huge fan of Roger’s work on and off the court. We share a love of tennis (although he might be a little better than I am) and a belief that all children deserve a world-class education. Roger’s foundation does great work to support education in Africa, so it will be a lot of fun to play alongside him for such an important cause," Gates said in the statement.

The press release added that Rolex, The Starbucks Foundation, Microsoft and Nike will sponsor the event in Seattle. Roger Federer is currently 19-1 this season after capturing the 2017 Australian Open, the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and the Miami Open title at Key Biscayne, Florida. After making the best start to a season since 2006, Federer will now take a two-month break from competitive ahead of the French Open in May-June.