Danai Gurira Quotes

Young boys and girls should be given the chance to play football.

Fundamentally, footballers don't look around a dressing room and think, 'He's a black player... he's Japanese.' They don't think like that. They think, 'He's a good player; he can help. He's not very good.' I'm not trying to defend anyone's actions, but there are going to be isolated incidents because it's an emotive, passionate sport.

In football there are lots of origins, cultures, religions and no one feels left out. We all play together and we are all friends. Supporters see that and feel part of the same family, especially in England where you feel very welcome.

I think Together #WePlayStrong is a big step for football. This project is about building interest and professionalism and making younger women want to play football at a high level.

I was an all-sport athlete growing up. My dad, I think, hoped I would go to college on a scholarship.

To make a difference within the football environment means to make a difference in the world.

The national team is the best example that integration can work.

I want to play football out on the pitch. I am not different to anyone else and the ambition never changes.

I was athletic growing up and that was, of course, a big part of my household, but it wasn't something that I was necessarily passionate about.

I became a professional footballer because I love football.

You really want a company that's full of people from all these different backgrounds and then allow them to be creative as possible, come together, and come up with great ideas.

I want to… help the young guys, help my teammates, help everybody be confident and make everybody feel like they're special.

I always remember being competitive. From the beginning, with my brothers, with my friends, playing at school, everything - in everything I was involved in.

Coach Spurrier was just an amazing competitor. I felt I learned to really love the competition of it all from watching him and being around him. All his assistant coaches were great recruiters, very professional in how they handled their business. So as a young guy, I got to see that all the time.

When you play sports, when you're on a team with people from different walks of life, and you have to look after each other and count on each other, race and all that stuff goes out the window when you are in the locker room.

I think it is so beneficial to English and British football when youngsters see different cultures and environments.

The England team is made up of good people, first and foremost, and we are a very multicultural side, too. I believe we represent our country well and our diversity is one of our strengths.

I think football is a game where people come together and football should bring everybody together, whether it is religion or skin colour or where you come from. We should be happy to enjoy that moment together, those 90 minutes where we can show love. Because I think football is love - and when love is not there, for what should we play?

I work closely with Hispanic leadership.

The U.S. military may well be the best-integrated large institution on the planet. You have people from every corner of the country, every ethnic background, every walk of life, and we all come together to serve.

As a kid, you just want to play football. For me one day it will end, but until the end I love getting the opportunity to go out there and play at a high level.

I never had a problem with the people I was close to because I was playing football with them, and they knew I could play. It didn't matter that I was a girl.

I grew up in Brixton as a young teenager playing basketball for the Brixton Topcats, which marked the beginning of my career.

I was so fortunate to play my club cricket at Moseley Ashfield. We had loads of Asians, white players, black players. You grow up from that knowing it just doesn't matter what religion or culture people are into, everyone is different.

Companies and football teams have become successful precisely because of how diverse they are.