The development of a malaria vaccine seems to be a definite possibility despite the fact that even individuals with a life time of endemic exposure do not develop sterile immunity. An effective malaria vaccine would be invaluable in preventing malaria‐associated deaths in endemic areas, especially amongst children less than 5 years of age and pregnant women. This review discusses our current understanding of immunity against the asexual blood stage of malaria − the stage that is responsible for the symptoms of the disease − and approaches to the design of an asexual blood stage vaccine.