DALLAS, Oct. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Roy Williams announced today that he is joining Pizza Hut and Yum! Brands in a global Hunger Relief effort. Williams issued a challenge to players in three other cities to see who could raise the most money for hunger relief.

"Every six seconds a child dies from hunger somewhere in the world," said Roy Williams, wide receiver, Dallas Cowboys. "Hearing this fact inspired me to get involved and do something. I'm proud to be a part of the 'Hunger to Hope' program and I want to do everything I can to help end hunger."

"Each of us can make a difference and together we can really make a change," Williams said. "That's why I'm challenging three other players to put on a uniform in a Pizza Hut restaurant for just one day to collect donations and see who can collect the most. We're all competitive guys, so this should get interesting.

Williams and three football opponents will race to accept the most donations on Tuesday, October 21. The players will collect tips and donations from generous patrons at participating Pizza Hut restaurants in their cities. Participating players include:

• Roy Williams, Dallas Cowboys (formerly of the Detroit Lions)
  
• Mark Clayton, Baltimore Ravens
  
• Davin Joseph, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  
• Chris Spencer, Seattle Seahawks

The player whose city raises the most money as an average per participating restaurant will receive a catered pizza party for their team. All players are receiving pizza and pasta for a year as a thank you from Pizza Hut.

Last year, Williams raised $10,000 for the World Hunger Relief campaign after delivering pizzas for Pizza Hut in Detroit. The wide receiver publicly commented that he didn't tip pizza delivery drivers as he was unsure of the protocol. Pizza Hut challenged him to walk in the shoes of a driver and Williams graciously obliged raising money for charity in the process.

Pizza Hut participates in World Hunger Relief as a Yum! brand. World Hunger Relief supports the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and other hunger relief agencies. Nearly 36,000 company and franchised restaurants located in more than 100 countries will be participating, including KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Long John Silver's and A&W All-American Food.

This year, Mariah Carey is the Hunger Relief Ambassador with the quote, "The change from hunger to hope starts with you." Customers who donate to the World Hunger Relief campaign at participating restaurants around the globe will receive a free download of her song, "Love Story" from her newest CD E=MC2.

Funds raised for WFP go directly to the areas of greatest need, feeding poor school children in the developing world and helping villages become self-sustainable. Every U.S. dollar raised during World Hunger Relief 2008 will provide four meals for hungry children all over the world. The company's employees and franchisees will be volunteering their time around the globe at hunger relief agencies, food banks, soup kitchens and launching fundraisers.

During this year's World Hunger Relief campaign, Yum! plans to generate the equivalent of nearly $50 million in awareness of the hunger issue through television and print advertising, public service announcements, public relations, web-based communications and in-restaurant posters and signage. In addition, the company is leveraging the power of the internet to reach millions of people through the http://www.fromhungertohope.com website and other online activity.

Yum! and its brands have been committed to fighting hunger for more than a decade by donating more than $46 million of prepared food annually to the underprivileged in the United States. Since the company went public in 1997, it has donated more than $500 million of its food to hunger relief agencies in the U.S.

About Pizza Hut
As the world's largest pizza restaurant company with 6,200 restaurants in the United States and more than 4,000 restaurants in 100 other countries, Pizza Hut, Inc., is a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM). The company's 50-year legacy of leadership and innovation has made it the recognized leader in the $37 billion pizza category. Those hungry for more information can go to the official Pizza Hut Website at http://www.pizzahut.com

About World Food Programme
WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency and the UN's frontline agency for hunger solutions. This year, WFP plans to feed around 90 million people in 80 countries.

Pizza Hut, Inc.

Pizza Hut, Inc.

Pizza Hut, a subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM), serves and delivers more pizzas than any other pizza company in the world. With easy order options including the Pizza Hut app, mobile site, Facebook and Twitter messenger and Amazon devices, Pizza Hut is committed to providing an easy pizza experience - from order to delivery. Founded in 1958, Pizza Hut has become the most-recognized pizza restaurant in the world, operating more than 16,400 restaurants in more than 100 countries. Pizza Hut is also the proprietor of The Literacy Project, an initiative designed to enable access, empower teachers and inspire a lifelong love of reading. The program is rooted in the foundation set by the Pizza Hut BOOK IT! Program, which is the longest-running corporate supported literacy program, impacting more than 14 million students each year. For more information, visit www.pizzahut.com. Follow Pizza Hut on Facebook (www.facebook.com/PizzaHut), Twitter (www.twitter.com/pizzahut) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/pizzahut).

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