Identifying as LGBTQ+ in Men's Football: A Toxic Environment
“There's still so much to accomplish” - the athlete on anti-gay prejudice in football
“You shouldn't exist” ... “What are you doing here?” ... “Stop breathing.”
After announcing 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 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 because of who I am. It's appalling.”
Player the sportsman was playing for Adelaide United four years ago when he became the only openly gay top-flight male professional footballer in the world.
Recently he departed from Australia to join lower-tier club Peterborough Sports, who play in front of crowds of about 400 in National League North, the sixth tier of the English soccer system.
The 25-year-old balances his sports career for the Cambridgeshire part-timers by speaking up on LGBTQ+ issues and leveraging his platform - he has more than one million followers on Instagram - to champion equality and inclusion.
“Definitely, we've got mountains to do,” the footballer says when asked if football still has a problem with discrimination.
“Rarely a week passes without encountering problems.”
‘People want to harm me’
Josh Cavallo grew up in Melbourne
It took years for the athlete to work up the courage to say “I am homosexual” before revealing his sexuality on 27 October 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 his Australian club in the premier division when, backed by his colleagues, he announced his orientation publicly.
“The future was uncertain. I had no expectations,” he says. “It felt like the right time in my life. I wanted to take the next step.”
His emotional coming out video, entitled ‘His Personal Story’, gained massive attention on digital platforms.
“My mobile phone exploded with encouraging words. The response was incredible.”
A prominent club were among numerous famous teams around the world to show solidarity with Cavallo, with then manager the German manager saying: “I'm really thankful that he took this step because it sparks conversation.”
Spanish player Gerard Pique also expressed backing, posting online that “soccer culture is far behind and your actions drive progress”, while Adelaide United issued a statement backing their “remarkable” and “courageous” player.
Others, however, were not so accepting.
Cavallo quickly became a subject to homophobic abuse by opposition fans.
During early 2022 Melbourne Victory were penalized A$5,000 over anti-gay abuse from spectators directed at the player during a match.
“The comments I encountered were painful and disparaging towards LGBTQ people,” he says.
“I didn't react because I knew that would only feed the haters.”
There was a frightening incident at a gas station in Australia, where the athlete was physically attacked by an individual who identified him from the media attention.
“It was terrifying,” he recalls. “I remember thinking ‘this is happening - people want to harm me’.
“Should this be tolerated? Absolutely not. But through my disclosure, these are the consequences.
“My wish is that the next person who comes out while competing in soccer at a professional standard doesn't have to experience the path I have experienced.”
The player says the daily death threats and hostile communications have affected his psychological well-being.
“It's disappointing because I am having to explain why I belong on the soccer pitch for being who I am,” he says.
“We don't sit straight people down and ask ‘why should you exist in football?’.
“A lot of people see me as a smiling, positive person. But sometimes when I lean on my fiance, his name, and he witnesses a lot that happens privately.”
‘Premier League player coming out would move mountains’
Cavallo's decision to disclose his orientation helped prompt 17-year-old Blackpool forward another athlete to announce he was gay as the Britain's sole publicly out active male professional footballer in May 2022.
Nevertheless, there are zero publicly LGBTQ athletes in the Premier League.
“It would move mountains,” comments the footballer on the impact a elite athlete revealing their orientation would make.
“But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. There are a lot of scary things that would await this individual. Within soccer culture, identifying as LGBTQ is a highly hostile environment.”
Over two decades after Justin Fashanu - Britain's first openly gay male footballer - died by suicide in 1998, Cavallo has discussed the “harmful male culture” that persists in men's football.
“You just need to go to a game and observe the unfriendly atmosphere and male-dominated culture that the crowd brings,” he says.
“There is still a lot of work to ensure there is a secure environment in soccer for individuals like me and Jake.
“Progress has been limited (more players coming out) as frequently as desired.
“I can only keep pushing for principles I believe in, and strive for taking out the harmful male norms in soccer locker 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 inspirational figure in sport and a champion for equality
The player says football has allowed him to have conversations within team environments about coming out.
However, he is critical of soccer's global governing body, after the Middle Eastern nation, where homosexual partnerships are against the law, staged the global tournament in 2022.
The 2034 tournament will be held in Saudi Arabia, where homosexuality is also illegal.
“Do I approve that the World Cup is in nations that ban gay unions, where individuals like myself will be imprisoned for merely living on that land? It's scary,” says Cavallo.
“I get messages [from residents of such nations] saying ‘I'm about to be put in prison for my identity - can you help me?’.
“It's devastating that people are getting locked up for their true selves.
“Certain nations that are huge in terms of football and they reject the queer community. These places that tend to target me.”
Nevertheless, the footballer says he will not stop speaking up.
“Soccer has enabled dialogue in the changing room. It lets me communicate and inform individuals 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 drive progress. That's my objective.”
