{"id":604188,"date":"2021-11-08T07:00:46","date_gmt":"2021-11-08T12:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=604188"},"modified":"2021-11-08T07:00:46","modified_gmt":"2021-11-08T12:00:46","slug":"josh-cavallo-scared-to-compete-in-qatar-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2021\/11\/08\/josh-cavallo-scared-to-compete-in-qatar-world-cup\/","title":{"rendered":"Josh Cavallo ‘Scared’ to Compete in Qatar World Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"

Josh Cavallo, men’s football’s only known top-flight gay footballer, has said he is ‘scared’<\/a> to compete at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar for Australia.<\/p>\n

Fans, governing bodies, leagues, clubs, managers, former and current players all supported Cavallo when he emotionally spoke about his sexuality<\/a> in a video published last month.<\/p>\n

Josh Cavallo ‘scared’ to compete in Qatar World Cup<\/h2>\n

Josh Cavallo’s interview<\/h3>\n

The Adelaide United left-back told The Guardian<\/a> that he would be fearful of the treatment he receives if he went to Qatar for the World Cup.<\/p>\n

\u201cI read something along the lines of that [they] give the death penalty for gay people in Qatar, so it\u2019s something I\u2019m very scared [of] and wouldn\u2019t really want to go to Qatar for that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that saddens me. At the end of the day the World Cup is in Qatar and one of the greatest achievements as a professional footballer is to play for your country, and to know that this is in a country that doesn\u2019t support gay people and puts us at risk of our own life, that does scare me and makes me re-evaluate \u2013 is my life more important than doing something really good in my career?\u201d<\/p>\n

The 21-year-old also revealed he was hiding his sexual identity from his family and friends. After overcoming this, Cavallo’s impact is already being seen with players contacting him privately for comfort and advice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are people who have reached out to me in confidentiality and said: \u2018I\u2019m struggling with the same thing Josh,\u2019 and they\u2019re professional footballers too. And look, it\u2019s something you can\u2019t rush. [I say] you want to be yourself, and at the end of the day I wasn\u2019t happy and now look at me, I\u2019m honestly on top of the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey like the sound of that and they say: \u2018Josh, I haven\u2019t experienced that before and I want to,\u2019 and I say: \u2018It\u2019s in your hands, it\u2019s your journey and there\u2019s a light at the end of the tunnel.\u2019 I didn\u2019t think there was but there definitely is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Qatari laws<\/h3>\n

Cavallo was right in saying Qatar’s laws criminalise homsexuality and it is punishable by death.<\/p>\n

A Stonewall report from 2019<\/a> found that same-sex marriage is prohibited and a same-sex couple is deemed unsuited to be a guardian. Ministers may prevent LGBT+ from entering the country, or even deport them due to their identity. Also, trans people are unable to legally change their gender.<\/p>\n

In 2019, World Cup chief executive Nasser al-Khater insisted fans of all backgrounds are welcome at the tournament but stopped short of supporting showing public display of affection.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to assure any fan, of any gender, (sexual) orientation, religion, race to rest assured that Qatar is one of the most safe countries in the world \u2014 and they\u2019ll all be welcome here,” he said<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe safety and security of every single fan is of the utmost importance to us. There\u2019s a lot of training going into security personnel to make sure that things that are culturally different are seen in that frame.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cPublic displays of affection is frowned upon, it\u2019s not part of our culture \u2013 but that goes across the board to everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Questions for FIFA<\/h3>\n

FIFA was one of the parties to support Cavallo when he released his video in October.<\/p>\n

They tweeted<\/a>: “‘I’m a footballer, and I’m gay.’ You no longer have to hide who you are <\/span>@joshuacavallo<\/a><\/span>. You are not alone, as the football community around the world today has shown. We are very proud of you. Your words will be an inspiration & support to so many.”<\/span><\/p>\n

If football’s global governing body failed to directly back a watershed moment in the sport, then criticism would have been seismic.<\/p>\n

Equally, critics fail to accept their loose words when evidence suggests they do not fulfil their duty of care role. Blatantly, handing Russia and Qatar World Cup’s in the first place, despite their human rights records, suggest they have little passion for actually supporting ethical causes.<\/p>\n

Cavallo admitting he fears for his life if he plays in Qatar should bring greater scrutiny on the FIFA and FIFA president Gianni Infantino.<\/p>\n

This follows on from\u00a0Finland’s Tim Sparv<\/a> penning a critical view on FIFA and the 2022 World Cup in September. He said “many people are still sleeping” on the problems of the Qatar World Cup.<\/p>\n

FIFA could be seen as one of the figures Sparv was referring to due to their failure to properly police their ethical conduct.<\/p>\n

Now, a player is scared to play football at their tournament because of their decision making. This scrutiny will only intensify in the build-up to the competition.<\/p>\n

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Main Photo<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a>