Chelsea star lands endorsement - then gives it away

12 November 2009 | Posted in Personal Endorsement, Soccer | By Adam Fraser

Didier Drogba, the Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker, has landed a major endorsement deal with Pepsi - but will spend the money to build a new hospital in his home country.

Drogba will receive almost US$5 million from Pepsi, and has pledged the cash to build a hospital in Abidjan as part of the Didier Drogba Foundation's work. According to the Daily Mail newspaper, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovic will also invest in the project.

"When I visited a hospital in Abidjan this year, I was shocked by the terrible conditions," Drogba told The Sun newspaper. "We hear about all the incurable diseases, but these kids are just as likely to die from diabetes because there is no insulin available."

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"It was then I decided the Foundation's first project should be to build and fund a hospital giving people basic healthcare and a chance just to stay alive," he added.