Right to Dream and Common Goal team up
Pioneering a new era of social contribution and purpose-driven business in football
Common Goal and Right to Dream are teaming up to disrupt the football industry’s status quo and drive the game as a force for good.
The partnership aims to help both organisations elevate football’s place in the world by altering the narrative whilst developing and testing methods and practices that enable the football industry to maximise its contribution to social change.
“Football still has a long way to go to even get close to living up to its full potential to be a true shaper of people and planet, and this can only be achieved by radical collaboration,” said Thomas Preiss, Co-founder of Common Goal.
Over the last two decades, Right to Dream has grown from its grassroots origins in Ghana into a globally renowned purpose-driven football enterprise. Right to Dream has a unique approach to combining player and human development, and a relentless commitment to demonstrating that sporting and financial success must be interwoven with sustainable social impact at the club it owns, Denmark’s FC Nordsjælland (FCN).
FCN became the first club to join the Common Goal movement in 2018, pledging 1% of its revenues and integrating the 1% pledge to all employee contracts with the ability to opt-out. Following FCN’s pledge, Right to Dream now becomes the first global brand in the sport for good sector to take the 1% pledge, enabling everyone in its organisation - including group leaders, academy administration, and staff to be part of the movement.
The organisation fosters a culture at its academies in Ghana, Egypt, and Denmark that encourages players to be the best versions of themselves on and off the pitch.
“Right to Dream is redefining how elite football defines success. We have adopted a fresh approach – which measures more than results – focussing on player and coach development to tackle social challenges,” commented Pippa Grange, Chief Culture Officer at Right to Dream.
“Right to Dream is redefining how elite football defines success. We have adopted a fresh approach – which measures more than results – focussing on player and coach development to tackle social challenges.”
“I’ve long admired Right to Dream’s model – utilising character development to deliver social responsibility. Their approach of developing young players with a unique style of play is fascinating,” said Juan Mata, Co-founder of Common Goal and Manchester United midfield maestro.
The new impact partnership has been made possible by the support of Egyptian entrepreneur and philanthropist Mohamed Mansour, the Chair of ManCapital, the investment arm of the Mansour Group, and his son Loutfy Mansour, the CEO of ManCapital.
“The new strategic partnership between Common Goal and Right to Dream will help both organisations continue to deliver lasting change for underserved communities throughout the world. The Mansour Group could not be prouder to support this partnership. We have developed a deep understanding and appreciation of Common Goal’s values through our work together with FC Nordsjælland. We are thoroughly excited to continue that journey, ” said Mr. Mohamed Mansour.
The partnership will enable the two organisations to support one another to be the best version of themselves as purposeful organisations, through knowledge and resource sharing, as well as collaborating on impact projects, new business development, and organisational growth initiatives.
“This impact partnership with Right to Dream, genuine innovators in the sport, is an important step forward in Common Goal’s mission to place purpose at the heart of football, and football at the core of change. We hope that many more industry leaders will join us. Working together, football has the power to transform the world,” said Common Goal Co-founder Thomas Preiss.
“We hope that many more industry leaders will join us. Working together, football has the power to transform the world.”
In addition, to enable organisational development, growth, and innovation, the partnership will work towards changing the narrative around football’s purpose, inspiring others to join a purpose-driven journey, and develop testing methods and a blueprint to support everyone in football to drive change.
Through the “Purpose Project Platform” programme, students, graduates, employees, and athletes from across the two organisations can launch their own purpose-driven projects. The programme will provide £20,000 grants to ten entrepreneurs and create access to tools, techniques, and mentors, including subject matter experts from across the Right to Dream and Common Goal networks.
Held annually, the “Football Leaders Connect” gathering brings together leaders from the football industry - institutions, clubs, athletes, and other stakeholders. The purpose of the event is to identify and activate opportunities to drive football’s impact agenda forward collectively and to define strategies that support club owners and other leaders to embed purpose at the heart of their businesses.
Common Goal and Right to Dream will jointly develop strategies and opportunities based on the 1% Common Goal mechanic and Right to Dream’s experience, to help club owners to develop and infuse purpose into their clubs, from new strategies to access to insight and research.
An internship programme will be rolled out to create development opportunities and pathways for the emerging excellence - talented youth who want to invest in their future and the future of their communities. This entails exciting work experiences that go beyond the football pitch and across both organisations and their respective partners.
And on the back of these intiatives, Right to Dream and Common Goal will publish a yearly ‘Football Purpose Report’ highlighting social innovation within the sport, sharing roadmaps and best practice suggestions for other stakeholders across football such as the clubs, and will look to measure success and progress on social issues benchmarked from one report to the next.
“Our partnership strategy centres around working with like-minded individuals, brands and organisations which support the growth of our model, opening up opportunities for more young people to fulfil their potential – in football, in education, and in life,” said Andy Gowland, Group Head of Partnerships at Right To Dream.
“Our partnership strategy centres around working with like-minded individuals, brands and organisations which support the growth of our model, opening up opportunities for more young people to fulfil their potential – in football, in education, and in life.”
“The Common Goal purpose strongly aligns with our own, which makes them perfect impact partners; together we will continue to use the value and power of football, community, and youth development to challenge the current footballing system and help build ways for it becoming a better version of itself,” said Gowland.