British actor Idris Elba and a group of soccer stars from around the globe are trying to raise public awareness of the West Africa Ebola epidemic.

So far, Ebola as killed more than 6,000 people in the West African nations of Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea. To raise awareness of the issue, Elba and the soccer players joined the Africa United campaign that was launched ahead of hte African Cup of Nations, which will take place in Equatorial Guinea, according to Reuters.

The campaign will broadcast messages to all three countries most greatly affected to televisions, radios, billboards, and even phone text messages.

Elba said the battle against Ebola is “a personal one,” as his family is from Sierra Leone and nearby Ghana, and to see the nations ravaged by the disease is “painful and horrific.” Elba is most known for starring in the popular HBO series “The Wire” and for portraying Nelson Mandela in the biopic “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.”

The campaign features various ads, including one where Elba plays a soccer coach providing a halftime pep talk in a “life or death” match between West Africa and Ebola, giving tips on spotting the disease and prevention methods along the way.

Soccer stars Yaya Toure, Carlton Cole, Kei Kamara, Patrick Vieira, Fabrice Muamba, and Andros Townsend will wear the names of healthcare workers on their backs as they play in the tournament.

Toure, who is from the Ivory Coast which shares a border with countries hit by the disease, said he wanted to pay tribute to the “many African heroes” who are battling Ebola.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have pledged their support for the campaign.