Zlatan, Griezmann: Josh Cavallo “overwhelmed” by messages after coming out

Josh Cavallo officially came out on Wednesday. The 21-year-old Adelaide United player in the Australian Championship (A-League) posted a video on social media in which he said: “I am a footballer and I am gay“. It was viewed seven million times in 24 hours.

His decision to make his sexual orientation public has been applauded in the football world, notably by Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic (“You are a champion. Football is for everyone. Great respect“), Antoine Griezmann, Marcus Rashford, Raphael Varane, Gerard Piqué and David de Gea. Cavallo even caught the attention of the famous American talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, who tweeted to her 77 million followers:”I send her a lot of love today.” “I am so overwhelmed and happy with the response I receivedThe player, who has represented Australia in the Under-20s, told Sky Sports.

“Time to change that”

“I want to send a message to the whole world to show that no matter who you are, what you believe in or what culture or background you come from, everyone is accepted in football“, Cavallo said.”It should be based on your talent, not what you look like or what you believe in“, added the native of Bentleigh East, a suburb of Melbourne.”At the end of the day, it’s 2021 and it’s time to change that in football“said Cavallo, who hopes his decision will inspire others.

Andy Brennan, who played a handful of A-League games before revealing he was gay after moving to an Australian semi-professional league three years ago, praised Cavallo. But he also wondered why gay gamers should be “braves” and “courageous“.

“To just be what we really are?“, he asked himself in a column published Thursday in the Australian edition of Guardian. “There is still a lot of work to be done to make sporting environments safe and inclusive for LGBTQ + people, so that athletes like me and Josh feel it’s a safe place for us to come out.“said Brennan.