Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Gay Soccer Star Has Powerful Message For Homophobes Who Sent Him Death Threats

Josh Cavallo
Sarah Reed/Getty Images

Josh Cavallo, who came out as gay in 2021, took to Instagram to share some of the hateful responses he's received with a hope to 'help individuals grow around the world.'

Australian soccer star Josh Cavallo had a powerful message to homophobes who've been sending him death threats ever since he came out as gay in October 2021.

The 24-year-old A-League Men midfielder also shared screenshots of some of the vile comments he received from homophobic trolls, and encouraged social media platforms to "do better" to prevent the online bullying of LGBTQ+ people.


At the time, his coming out was significant in that there had been no other professional top-flight soccer players who publicly identified as LGBTQ+.

Unfortunately, coming out as gay in sports remains stigmatized today, leaving many closeted pro athletes discouraged from living authentically in the public eye.

Cavallo, who has been using his platform to advocate for supporting LGBTQ+ athletes, took to Instagram and wrote:

"I share my life via this social media platform to help individuals grow around the world. To feel empowered in their own skin. To be comfortable with the person they wish to be."
"I’m hand on heart so proud of how much my football club and the LGBTQIA+ community have grown in the world of football but we have to remember there is still a huge amount of work left."



He added that, even in 2023, the slightest anti-LGBTQ+ abuse "can be more harmful than you think."

"Two years on from my coming out journey and I go through my everyday life being reminded how people wish me dead," he said.

He apologized for the second slide in his post that included examples of hateful comments, and he warned followers to:

"Please read with caution and contact any life line or support network if you may feel triggered in any way."

One commenter wrote, "You will die."

A second called for him to be put "in mental asylum," while another wrote, "Waste of a human being soo annoying."

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram


Cavallo ended the post with:

"To all you social media platforms, all I have to say to you is do better."

Many people lauded his courage for speaking out and reminded the star player that there were more supporters than haters.

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram

@joshua.cavallo/Instagram


Cavallo plays as a left-back and central midfielder for A-League Men club Adelaide United in South Australia.

He was rewarded with Adelaide United's A-League Rising Star award after a successful 2020–21 campaign.

On October 26, 2021, the club supported him by sharing his emotional coming out video on its social media pages.

Cavallo previously worried about how coming out would negatively impact his career, and he mentioned that he knew of other players "living in silence."

“I want to help change this, to show that everyone is welcome in the game of football, and deserves the right to be their authentic self,” he wrote.

“It is astonishing to know that there are currently no gay professional footballers who are out and actively playing, not only in Australia, but around the world."
"Hopefully this will change in the near future."
“I hope that in sharing who I am, I can show others who identify as LGBTQ+ that they are welcome in the football community."

He added:

"As the game of football keeps expanding, I want to help evolve the game even further, and let other players in my situation feel that they’re not alone.”

LGBTQ+ Youth can get help through:

More from News/lgbtq

Screenshots of Peter Doocy and Karine Jean-Pierre
C-SPAN

Karine Jean-Pierre Rips Peter Doocy For Asking Rude Question About Harris And Biden's Lunch

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was left scratching her head after Fox News reporter Peter Doocy asked her how "awkward" Vice President Kamala Harris's recent lunch with President Joe Biden was after she lost the election to President-elect Donald Trump.

Doocy asked:

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Scott Jennings
CNN

GOP CNN Pundit Leaves Viewers Groaning With Tongue-In-Cheek Pick To Replace Rubio

CNN conservative commentator Scott Jennings closed out Tuesday's NewsNight broadcast by jokingly offering his pick to replace Marco Rubio in the Senate after Rubio was named as President-elect Donald Trump's pick for secretary of state—none other than former pro wrestler Hulk Hogan.

He said:

Keep ReadingShow less
Armie Hammer
Tibrina Hobson/WireImage

Armie Hammer Reveals Bizarrely Personal Gift His Mom Got Him For His Birthday—And Wow

What do you get the man who has—or at least had—everything? If the man in question is actor Armie Hammer and you're his mom, the answer is apparently a vasectomy.

Since his notorious sex scandal, Hammer has started to edge back onto the scene with a handful of projects that include his podcast The Armie HammerTime Podcast, where he recently hosted his mom Dru as his guest.

Keep ReadingShow less
Couple holding hands silhouetted by sunset
Caleb Ekeroth/Unsplash

Bitter Life Lessons People Learned From Their Longest Relationships

Couples who have been in long-lasting relationships for years and thought they were in it for the long haul sometimes find that things don't always pan out the way they initially hoped. Many perpetually single people envy couples who've been together for years, but they don't always know what happens behind closed doors.

Perceived successes in long-lasting relationships aren't always as they seem. They can sometimes be a facade to cover up conflict or underlying resentment or they're delaying news of an inevitable breakup to save face.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Kyle Clark and Lauren Boebert

News Anchor Mocks Boebert For Focusing On 'Underwater Space Aliens' During Hearing

9News Denver anchor Kyle Clark took Colorado Republican Representative Lauren Boebert to task for focusing on "underwater space aliens" and "hybrids" during a House Oversight Committee hearing.

On Wednesday, members of Congress held a joint hearing through subcommittees of the House Oversight Committee to examine whether intelligent alien life exists and if the U.S. government has concealed unexplained phenomena, potentially using secret extraterrestrial discoveries to advance its technology.

Keep ReadingShow less