About the campaign: You can help equalize the game for boys and girls in southern Africa who face significant adolescent health challenges, perpetuated by harmful gender norms. These deep-seated and persistent perceptions are what make girls and young women up to four times more likely to contract HIV; what make boys and young men much less likely to access health services; and what enable and justify gender-based violence.

By supporting the work of Grassroot Soccer, you’ll be enabling boys and young men to develop positive perceptions of themselves and their female counterparts; to rethink what it means to be a man; and to promote healthy and protective behaviors around sexual violence, substance abuse, power, and other sensitive topics. You’ll be strengthening the educational and sexual and reproductive health assets of girls. You’ll be ensuring young people can become agents of change—because dreams have no gender.

To donate to our Dreams Have No Gender campaign, click here. 

Grassroot Soccer Global Ambassador Quinton Fortune’s impressive career has included massive success with Manchester United and participation in the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup competitions.

Growing up in South Africa during apartheid, Fortune left for the UK in 1991 at the age of 14. After a spell playing for Atlético Madrid, Fortune was signed by Manchester United in 1999, and it was there that he enjoyed the most successful period of his career, playing 126 times in seven years. The former midfielder played 46 times for South Africa and is considered part of the dream team of South African football.

Fortune is a strong advocate of education for all as well as gender equality and speaks out against gender-based violence. He supported the anti-domestic violence group Tender, as part of their “Don’t Kick Off campaign” during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, aimed to stop men from using football as an excuse for violence against women.

As part of Grassroot Soccer’s Dreams Have No Gender campaign, we asked Fortune for his reflections on positive masculinity. These were his responses.