Identifying as LGBTQ+ in Men's Football: An Unwelcoming Atmosphere

“You shouldn't exist” ... “What are you doing here?” ... “Don't take another breath.”

After announcing he was gay in 2021, player Josh Cavallo has faced constant threats and hateful comments on online platforms.

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

“I'm working to improve my skills and be the best I can be on the pitch, and then get put down due to my identity. It's appalling.”

Player the sportsman 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 left Australia to join non-league Peterborough Sports, who play in front of crowds of about 400 in the sixth division, the sixth tier of English football.

This young athlete combines playing for the Cambridgeshire part-timers by advocating for LGBTQ+ issues and using his profile - he has more than one million followers on social media - to promote fairness and inclusion.

“Definitely, there's enormous work ahead,” Cavallo says when questioned about ongoing issues with discrimination.

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

‘People want to harm me’

Several years passed for the athlete to work up the courage to say “I am homosexual” before coming out on October 27th, 2021.

“All I want to do is compete in soccer and receive fair treatment,” he said in an accompanying video.

The player was twenty-one and building his reputation at Adelaide United 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. “The moment seemed appropriate in my life. I wanted to take the next step.”

His emotional coming out video, entitled ‘Josh's Truth’, gained massive attention on social media.

“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 the coach at the time the German manager saying: “I'm really thankful that he did it because now we talk again.”

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique also offered support, writing on social media that “soccer culture is lagging behind and your actions drive progress”, while his former club released a comment supporting their “remarkable” and “courageous” player.

Others, however, were less welcoming.

The footballer quickly became a subject to homophobic abuse by opposition fans.

In January 2022 Melbourne Victory were penalized five thousand dollars over discriminatory chants from fans directed at the player during a match.

“The comments I encountered were hurtful and derogatory towards my community,” he says.

“I remained calm because responding would encourage detractors.”

A scary event occurred at a gas station in Australia, where the athlete was physically attacked by someone who recognised him from the coverage.

“That was a scary moment,” he recalls. “The thought crossed my mind ‘this is real - people want to harm me’.

“Should this be tolerated? Absolutely not. But through my disclosure, this is what it brings.

“My wish is that future individuals who comes out while playing football at a professional standard doesn't have to experience the journey I have experienced.”

Cavallo says the constant menacing messages and abusive messages have taken a toll on his mental health.

“It's quite sad because I must justify 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?’.

“Many individuals see me as a cheerful, optimistic person. But sometimes when I rely on my partner, Leighton, and he witnesses much of what occurs behind the scenes.”

‘Premier League player coming out would move mountains’

Cavallo's decision to reveal his sexuality helped inspire teenage Blackpool forward another athlete to announce he was gay as the UK's only openly gay playing soccer professional in May 2022.

Nevertheless, there are no openly gay or bisexual players in the top English division.

“It would move mountains,” says the footballer on the effect a Premier League player coming out would make.

“But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. 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, the current athlete has spoken about the “toxic masculinity” that still exists in professional soccer.

“Simply attend to a game and see the hostile environment and male-dominated culture that the audience creates,” he says.

“Much remains to be done to make sure there is a secure environment in football for people like myself and his colleague.

“We haven't seen it (additional athletes revealing their orientation) as frequently as desired.

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

‘My mission is to drive progress’

Cavallo says football has allowed him to have conversations inside dressing rooms about coming out.

Yet, he is critical of soccer's global governing body, after Qatar, where same-sex relationships are against the law, staged the global tournament in 2022.

Future World Cup is scheduled in another Gulf state, where same-sex attraction is also illegal.

“Do I approve that the World Cup is in nations that criminalise same-sex marriages, where individuals like myself will be put in prison for just existing on their territory? It's frightening,” states the athlete.

“I get messages [from people living in these countries] saying ‘I'm about to be put in prison for my identity - can you help me?’.

“It's devastating that individuals are incarcerated for being who they are.

“There are countries that are significant soccer markets and they reject the queer community. Those are the countries that often focus on me.”

Despite this, the footballer says he will not stop speaking up.

“Soccer has enabled dialogue in the locker room. It has allowed me to speak and inform individuals who want to learn more.

“Not everyone is going to like you for your identity. But I've discovered support. I have found my community.

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