🔗 Share this article

“You don't belong on this earth” ... “Why are you here?” ... “Don't take another breath.”

Since revealing he was gay in 2021, footballer Josh Cavallo has received daily death threats and abusive messages on online platforms.

“Upon reading those comments, it broke my heart,” Cavallo states. “Nobody should have to endure such words.

“I'm trying to get better as a player and be the best I can be during matches, and then face criticism due to my identity. It's appalling.”

Player the sportsman was at Adelaide United back in 2020 when he became the only openly gay elite soccer player in the world.

Recently he left Australia to join lower-tier club Peterborough Sports, who compete before audiences of about 400 in the sixth division, the sixth tier of English football.

This young athlete balances his sports career for the semi-professional team by speaking up on inclusion matters and using his profile - he has more than one million followers on Instagram - to promote fairness and acceptance.

“Absolutely, there's enormous work ahead,” the footballer comments when asked if football still has a problem with homophobia.

“I don't go more than a week without hearing about an issue.”

‘People want to harm me’

It took years for Cavallo to work up the courage to say “I'm gay” before revealing his sexuality on 27 October 2021.

“My only desire is play football and be treated equally,” he stated in an related clip.

Cavallo was twenty-one and building his reputation at his Australian club in the premier division when, backed by his colleagues, he publicly came out.

“I didn't know what was ahead. I had no expectations,” he recalls. “The moment seemed appropriate in my life. I needed to move forward.”

The heartfelt revelation clip, entitled ‘His Personal Story’, gained massive attention on social media.

“My phone was flooded with messages of support. It was overwhelming.”

A prominent club were among numerous famous teams around the world to express support for the player, with then manager the German manager saying: “I appreciate that he did it because it sparks conversation.”

Spanish player Gerard Pique also expressed backing, writing on social media that “soccer culture is lagging behind and your actions drive progress”, while Adelaide United issued a statement supporting their “remarkable” and “courageous” player.

Others, however, were not so accepting.

The footballer soon turned into a target of anti-gay remarks by rival supporters.

In January 2022 a competing team were fined five thousand dollars over anti-gay abuse from spectators directed at Cavallo during a game.

“The things I'd hear were hurtful and derogatory towards my community,” he explains.

“I remained calm because I knew that would only feed the haters.”

A scary event occurred at a petrol station in Australia, where the athlete was assaulted by an individual who identified him from the coverage.

“It was terrifying,” he recalls. “The thought crossed my mind ‘this is real - individuals intend to hurt me’.

“Should this be tolerated? Absolutely not. But through my disclosure, these are the consequences.

“I hope that future individuals who comes out while playing football at a high level won't face the journey I have endured.”

The player says the daily death threats and hostile communications have affected his mental health.

“It's quite sad because I am having to explain why I belong on the football field for my identity,” he states.

“We don't sit straight people down and ask ‘what gives you the right in football?’.

“A lot of people see me as a cheerful, positive person. But sometimes when I rely on my partner, his name, and he gets to see much of what occurs privately.”

‘Premier League player coming out would move mountains’

Cavallo's decision to reveal his sexuality helped inspire teenage Blackpool forward Jake Daniels to come out as the UK's only openly gay active male professional footballer in May 2022.

However, there are zero publicly LGBTQ athletes in the Premier League.

“It would create massive change,” says the footballer on the impact a Premier League player revealing their orientation would make.

“But I must be honest. There are a lot of scary things that would come this person's way. Within soccer culture, being an openly gay player is a highly hostile environment.”

Twenty-seven years after a pioneering player - the UK's initial out soccer professional - took his own life in 1998, the current athlete has discussed the “toxic masculinity” that still exists in men's football.

“You just need to go to a game and see the hostile environment and male-dominated culture that the crowd brings,” he says.

“Much remains to be done to ensure there is a safe space in soccer for individuals like me and his colleague.

“Progress has been limited (more players coming out) as frequently as desired.

“I can only keep pushing for what I think is right, and work towards eliminating the toxic masculinity in soccer locker rooms and creating a safe space.”

‘My mission is to drive progress’

Cavallo says soccer has allowed him to have conversations within team environments about coming out.

Yet, he is disapproving toward soccer's global governing body, after the Middle Eastern nation, where same-sex relationships are against the law, staged the global tournament in 2022.

Future World Cup will be held in another Gulf state, where homosexuality is similarly prohibited.

“Do I approve that the World Cup is in countries that criminalise same-sex marriages, where individuals like myself will be imprisoned for just existing on their territory? It's scary,” says Cavallo.

“I get messages [from people living in these countries] saying ‘I face imprisonment for being who I am - can you help me?’.

“It breaks my heart that people are getting locked up for their true selves.

“There are countries that are significant soccer markets and they don't accept the queer community. These places that often focus on me.”

Despite this, the footballer says he won't cease advocating.

“Soccer has enabled dialogue in the changing room. It lets me communicate and inform individuals who want to learn more.

“Some will disapprove for your identity. But I've discovered support. I've connected with similar people.

“My mission is to create change. That's my objective.”