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“You don't belong on this earth” ... “What are you doing here?” ... “Don't take another breath.”

After announcing his homosexuality in 2021, footballer Josh Cavallo has received daily death 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 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 became the only openly gay elite soccer player in the world.

Recently he departed from Australia to join non-league Peterborough Sports, who compete before audiences of about 400 in the sixth division, one level below of English football.

The 25-year-old balances his sports career for the Cambridgeshire part-timers by advocating for inclusion matters and using his profile - boasting over a million followers on Instagram - to promote fairness and acceptance.

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

“I don't go more than a week without encountering problems.”

‘Individuals wish to hurt me’

Several years passed for the athlete to work up the courage to say “I'm gay” before coming out on 27 October 2021.

“All I want to do is compete in soccer and be treated equally,” he said in an accompanying video.

The player was twenty-one and building his reputation at his Australian club in Australia's top flight when, backed by his colleagues, he announced his orientation publicly.

“I didn't know what was ahead. I didn't know what to expect,” he recalls. “It felt like the right time in my life. I wanted to take the next step.”

The heartfelt revelation clip, titled ‘Josh's Truth’, went viral on social media.

“My mobile phone exploded with encouraging words. It was overwhelming.”

A prominent club were one of many high-profile clubs around the world to express support for Cavallo, with the coach at the time the German manager saying: “I appreciate that he took this step because now we talk again.”

Barcelona defender the athlete 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 “extraordinary” and “courageous” player.

Some people, however, were less welcoming.

Cavallo soon turned into a target of homophobic abuse by rival supporters.

In January 2022 a competing team were penalized five thousand dollars over discriminatory chants from fans directed at Cavallo during a game.

“The things I'd hear were hurtful and disparaging towards LGBTQ people,” he says.

“I remained calm because I knew that would only feed the haters.”

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

“It was terrifying,” he remembers. “I remember thinking ‘this is real - individuals intend to hurt me’.

“Is it acceptable? Definitely 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 path I have experienced.”

Cavallo says the daily death threats and hostile communications have affected his psychological well-being.

“It's disappointing because I must justify why I belong on the soccer pitch for being who I am,” 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 there are days when I rely on my partner, Leighton, and he witnesses a lot that happens behind the scenes.”

‘Premier League player coming out would move mountains’

The player's choice to reveal his sexuality helped inspire teenage Blackpool forward Jake Daniels to announce he was gay as the UK's only openly gay active male professional footballer in spring 2022.

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

“It would create massive change,” says Cavallo on the effect a elite athlete coming out would have.

“But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. There are a lot of scary things that would come this person's way. In the world of football, identifying as LGBTQ is a very toxic place.”

Twenty-seven years after a pioneering player - Britain's first openly gay male footballer - took his own life in 1998, the current athlete has discussed the “harmful male culture” that persists in men's football.

“Simply attend to a match and observe the unfriendly atmosphere and masculinity that the audience creates,” he explains.

“Much remains to be done to ensure there is a secure environment in soccer for people like myself and Jake.

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

“My role is to continue advocating for principles I believe in, and work towards eliminating the toxic masculinity in football changing rooms and establishing secure environments.”

‘My mission is to drive progress’

The player says football has allowed him to have conversations within team environments about revealing one's orientation.

However, he is critical of Fifa, 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 homosexuality is similarly prohibited.

“Am I impressed that the global championship is in countries that ban gay unions, where individuals like myself will be imprisoned for merely living on that land? It's frightening,” says Cavallo.

“I receive communications [from people living in these countries] saying ‘I'm about to be put in prison for my identity - is assistance possible?’.

“It breaks my heart that people are getting locked up for being who they are.

“Certain nations that are significant soccer markets and they don't accept LGBTQ+ people. Those are the countries that tend to target me.”

Despite this, Cavallo says he will not stop speaking up.

“Football has enabled dialogue in the changing room. It lets me communicate and educate people who want to learn more.

“Not everyone is going to like you for who you are. But I have found my family. I have found my community.

“My mission is to drive progress. That's what I'm here for.”