“We've got mountains to do” - the athlete on anti-gay prejudice in soccer
“You shouldn't exist” ... “What are you doing here?” ... “Stop breathing.”
After announcing his homosexuality in 2021, player Josh Cavallo has faced constant threats and abusive messages on online platforms.
“When I first saw these messages, it broke my heart,” Cavallo explains. “Nobody should have to endure such words.
“I'm working to improve my skills and reach my full potential during matches, and then get put down due to my identity. It's disgusting.”
Midfielder Cavallo was at Adelaide United four years ago when he emerged as the sole publicly out top-flight male professional footballer in the world.
Recently he departed from Australia to join lower-tier club Peterborough Sports, who compete before audiences of about 400 in National League North, the sixth tier of the English soccer system.
This young athlete balances his sports career for the semi-professional team by speaking up on LGBTQ+ issues and using his profile - he has more than one million followers on social media - to champion equality and inclusion.
“Absolutely, we've got mountains to do,” Cavallo says when asked if football still has a problem with discrimination.
“I don't go more than a week without encountering problems.”
The player was raised in Melbourne
Several years passed for Cavallo to work up the courage to say “I am homosexual” before revealing his sexuality on October 27th, 2021.
“All I want to do is compete in soccer and receive fair treatment,” he stated in an accompanying video.
The player was twenty-one and building his reputation at Adelaide United in Australia's top flight when, backed by his colleagues, he publicly came out.
“I didn't know what was ahead. I had no expectations,” he says. “The moment seemed appropriate in my life. I needed to move forward.”
The heartfelt revelation clip, titled ‘Josh's Truth’, went viral on social media.
“My phone was flooded with encouraging words. It was overwhelming.”
A prominent club were one of many high-profile clubs around the world to show solidarity with Cavallo, with the coach at the time the German manager saying: “I appreciate that he did it because now we talk again.”
Spanish player Gerard Pique also offered support, posting online that “the world of football is far behind and you are helping us move forward”, while his former club issued a statement backing their “extraordinary” and “courageous” player.
Some people, however, were less welcoming.
Cavallo soon turned into a subject to anti-gay remarks by opposition fans.
During early 2022 Melbourne Victory were fined A$5,000 over discriminatory chants from spectators aimed toward Cavallo during a game.
“The things I'd hear were painful and derogatory towards LGBTQ people,” he explains.
“I remained calm because I knew that would only feed the haters.”
There was a frightening incident at a petrol station in Australia, where Cavallo was physically attacked by someone who recognised him from the coverage.
“That was a scary moment,” he remembers. “The thought crossed my mind ‘this is real - individuals intend to hurt me’.
“Is it acceptable? Definitely not. But through my disclosure, these are the consequences.
“My wish is that future individuals who comes out while playing football at a professional standard won't face the path I have experienced.”
Cavallo says the constant menacing messages and hostile communications have taken a toll on his mental health.
“It's disappointing because I am having to explain why I deserve a place on the soccer pitch for being who I am,” he states.
“Heterosexual players aren't questioned and ask ‘why should you exist in football?’.
“Many individuals see me as a cheerful, positive person. But sometimes when I lean on my fiance, Leighton, and he witnesses a lot that happens privately.”
Cavallo's decision to reveal his sexuality helped prompt teenage Blackpool forward another athlete to come out as the UK's only openly gay playing soccer professional in spring 2022.
However, there are zero publicly LGBTQ athletes in the top English division.
“It would move mountains,” says Cavallo on the effect a elite athlete coming out would have.
“But I must be honest. There are a lot of scary things that would await this individual. In the world of football, being an openly gay player is a very toxic place.”
Over two decades after Justin Fashanu - the UK's initial out soccer professional - died by suicide in 1998, Cavallo has spoken about the “harmful male culture” that still exists in professional soccer.
“Simply attend to a match and see the hostile environment and masculinity that the crowd brings,” he says.
“Much remains to be done to make sure there is a safe space in football for people like myself and Jake.
“We haven't seen it (additional athletes revealing their orientation) as much as we would like.
“I can only keep pushing for what I think is right, and work towards taking out the harmful male norms in football changing rooms and establishing secure environments.”
The athlete was awarded an honorary degree from an academic institution in his former city in 2022, recognising his contributions as a inspirational figure in athletics and a champion for equality
Cavallo says football has allowed him to have conversations inside dressing rooms about revealing one's orientation.
Yet, he is disapproving toward Fifa, after Qatar, where same-sex relationships are against the law, staged the global tournament in 2022.
Future World Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality is similarly prohibited.
“Am I impressed that the World Cup is in nations that criminalise same-sex marriages, where individuals like myself will be put in prison for merely living on that land? It's scary,” states Cavallo.
“I receive communications [from people living in these countries] saying ‘I'm about to be put in prison for being who I am - is assistance possible?’.
“It's devastating that people are getting locked up for their true selves.
“There are countries that are huge in terms of football and they don't accept LGBTQ+ people. Those are the countries that tend to target me.”
Despite this, the footballer says he will not stop speaking up.
“Football has enabled dialogue in the locker room. It lets me communicate and educate people who seek understanding.
“Not everyone is going to like you for your identity. But I have found my family. I have found my community.
“My mission is to create change. That's what I'm here for.”
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