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

After announcing he was gay in 2021, player the athlete has faced constant threats and abusive messages on online platforms.

“When I first saw these messages, it broke my heart,” the player explains. “Nobody should have to endure such words.

“I'm working to improve my skills and reach my full potential on the pitch, and then face criticism due to my identity. It's appalling.”

Player the sportsman was at Adelaide United back in 2020 when he emerged as the sole publicly out top-flight male professional footballer in the world.

This summer he departed from Australia to join lower-tier club Peterborough Sports, who play in front of crowds of about 400 in the sixth division, one level below of English football.

The 25-year-old combines playing for the Cambridgeshire part-timers by speaking up on inclusion matters and using his profile - boasting over a million followers on social media - to champion equality and inclusion.

“Definitely, we've got mountains to do,” Cavallo says when questioned about ongoing issues with discrimination.

“Rarely a week passes without encountering problems.”

‘Individuals wish to hurt me’

Several years passed for Cavallo to work up the courage to say “I'm gay” before revealing his sexuality on October 27th, 2021.

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

Cavallo was twenty-one and making a name for himself at Adelaide United in the premier division when, with the support of his team-mates, he publicly came out.

“I didn't know what was ahead. I had no expectations,” he recalls. “It felt like the right time in my life. I wanted to take the next step.”

His emotional coming out video, titled ‘His Personal Story’, went viral on social media.

“My mobile phone exploded with encouraging words. The response was incredible.”

Liverpool were among numerous famous teams around the world to express support for the player, with then manager Jurgen Klopp saying: “I appreciate that he did it because it sparks conversation.”

Spanish player the athlete also offered support, writing on social media that “soccer culture is far behind and you are helping us move forward”, while Adelaide United released a comment backing their “remarkable” and “brave” player.

Some people, however, were not so accepting.

Cavallo soon turned into a subject to anti-gay remarks by rival supporters.

During early 2022 a competing team were penalized five thousand dollars over anti-gay abuse from spectators aimed toward the player during a game.

“The things I'd hear were hurtful and derogatory towards my community,” he explains.

“I didn't react because I knew that would only feed the haters.”

There was a frightening incident 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 recalls. “I remember thinking ‘this is real - individuals intend to hurt me’.

“Is it acceptable? Definitely not. But by coming out, this is what it brings.

“My wish is that future individuals who reveals their orientation while playing football at a high level won't face the path I have experienced.”

Cavallo says the daily death threats and hostile communications have taken a toll on his mental health.

“It's quite sad because I must justify why I deserve a place on the soccer pitch 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’

The player's choice to disclose his orientation helped inspire teenage attacking player another athlete to come out as the Britain's sole publicly out active male professional footballer in spring 2022.

However, there are no openly gay or bisexual players in the Premier League.

“It would move mountains,” says Cavallo on the impact a elite athlete revealing their orientation would have.

“But I'm not going to sugar-coat it. Numerous frightening aspects that would come this person's way. Within soccer culture, identifying as LGBTQ is a highly hostile environment.”

Twenty-seven years after a pioneering player - Britain's first openly gay male footballer - died by suicide in 1998, the current athlete has spoken about the “harmful male culture” that persists in professional soccer.

“You just need to go to a match and see the unfriendly atmosphere and male-dominated culture that the crowd brings,” he says.

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

“Progress has been limited (additional athletes revealing their orientation) as frequently as desired.

“My role is to continue advocating for principles I believe in, and strive for eliminating the toxic masculinity in football changing rooms and creating a safe space.”

‘I'm here to create change’

Cavallo says football has allowed him to have conversations within team environments about coming out.

Yet, he is critical of soccer's global governing body, after Qatar, where homosexual partnerships are illegal, hosted the men's World Cup in 2022.

The 2034 tournament will be held in another Gulf state, where same-sex attraction is similarly prohibited.

“Am I impressed that the global championship is in countries that criminalise same-sex marriages, where individuals like myself will be imprisoned for merely living on their territory? It's frightening,” states Cavallo.

“I get messages [from residents of such nations] saying ‘I face imprisonment for being who I am - is assistance possible?’.

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

“There are countries that are huge in terms of football and they don't accept LGBTQ+ people. These places 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 lets me communicate and educate people who seek understanding.

“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 create change. That's my objective.”