Identifying as LGBTQ+ in Professional Soccer: A Toxic Environment
“We've got mountains to do” - the athlete on homophobia in soccer
“You don't belong on this earth” ... “What are you doing here?” ... “Don't take another breath.”
Since revealing he was gay in 2021, footballer the athlete has received daily death threats and abusive messages on online platforms.
“Upon reading those comments, I was devastated,” Cavallo states. “No-one wants to read things like that.
“I'm working to improve my skills and reach my full potential on the pitch, and then get put down because of who I am. It's disgusting.”
Midfielder Cavallo was at Adelaide United four years ago when he emerged as the sole publicly out elite soccer player in the world.
Recently he departed from Australia to sign with non-league Peterborough Sports, who compete before audiences of about 400 in National League North, one level below of the English soccer system.
This young athlete balances his sports career for the Cambridgeshire part-timers by advocating for inclusion matters and using his profile - boasting over a million followers on social media - to promote fairness and inclusion.
“Absolutely, we've got mountains to do,” Cavallo says when asked if football still has a problem with homophobia.
“Rarely a week passes without hearing about an issue.”
‘Individuals wish to hurt me’
Josh Cavallo grew up in Melbourne
It took years for Cavallo to work up the courage to say “I'm gay” before revealing his sexuality on 27 October 2021.
“All I want to do is play football and be treated equally,” he said in an related clip.
The player was twenty-one and making a name for himself at his Australian club in Australia's top flight when, with the support of his team-mates, he announced his orientation publicly.
“The future was uncertain. I had no expectations,” he recalls. “It felt like the right time in my life. I needed to move forward.”
His emotional coming out video, entitled ‘Josh's Truth’, went viral on digital platforms.
“My mobile phone exploded with messages of support. The response was incredible.”
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 “soccer culture is lagging behind and you are helping us move forward”, while his former club issued a statement backing their “remarkable” and “brave” player.
Others, however, were less welcoming.
Cavallo quickly became a subject to homophobic abuse by rival supporters.
During early 2022 Melbourne Victory were penalized A$5,000 over anti-gay abuse from spectators aimed toward Cavallo during a game.
“The comments I encountered were hurtful and disparaging towards LGBTQ people,” he explains.
“I didn't react because I knew that would only feed the haters.”
A scary event occurred at a gas station in Australia, where the athlete was physically attacked by an individual who identified him from the coverage.
“That was a scary moment,” he remembers. “The thought crossed my mind ‘this is real - people want to harm me’.
“Should this be tolerated? Definitely not. But through my disclosure, these are the consequences.
“I hope that the next person who reveals their orientation while competing in soccer at a professional standard won't face the journey I have experienced.”
Cavallo says the daily death threats and abusive messages have taken a toll on his psychological well-being.
“It's disappointing because I must justify why I belong on the football field for being who I am,” 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 smiling, optimistic person. But sometimes when I lean on my fiance, his name, and he gets to see a lot that happens behind the scenes.”
‘Top-tier athlete revealing orientation would create waves’
The player's choice to reveal his sexuality helped inspire teenage Blackpool forward another athlete to come out as the UK's only openly gay playing soccer professional in May 2022.
However, there are zero publicly LGBTQ athletes in the top English division.
“It would create massive change,” says the footballer on the effect a Premier League player revealing their orientation would have.
“But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. There are a lot of scary things that would await this individual. Within soccer culture, being an openly gay player is a highly hostile environment.”
Over two decades after a pioneering player - Britain's first openly gay male footballer - died by suicide in 1998, Cavallo has discussed the “harmful male culture” that still exists in professional soccer.
“Simply attend to a match and observe the unfriendly atmosphere and male-dominated culture that the crowd brings,” he explains.
“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 (additional athletes revealing their orientation) as frequently as desired.
“My role is to continue advocating for what I think is right, and strive for eliminating the harmful male norms in football changing rooms and establishing secure environments.”
‘I'm here to create change’
Cavallo received an honorary doctorate from an academic institution in his former city in 2022, recognising his contributions as a role model in athletics and a champion for equality
Cavallo says soccer has enabled discussions within team environments about coming out.
However, he is disapproving toward Fifa, after Qatar, where same-sex relationships are against the law, hosted the men's World Cup in 2022.
The 2034 tournament will be held in Saudi Arabia, where same-sex attraction is similarly prohibited.
“Do I approve that the global championship is in countries that criminalise same-sex marriages, where people like me will be put in prison for just existing on that land? It's frightening,” states the athlete.
“I receive communications [from people living in these countries] saying ‘I face imprisonment for being who I am - is assistance possible?’.
“It breaks my heart that individuals are incarcerated for their true selves.
“Certain nations that are huge in terms of football and they don't accept LGBTQ+ people. These places that often focus on me.”
Nevertheless, Cavallo says he won't cease advocating.
“Football has allowed me to start conversations in the changing room. It has allowed me to speak and educate people who want to learn more.
“Not everyone is going to like you for your identity. But I've discovered support. I've connected with similar people.
“My mission is to drive progress. That's what I'm here for.”