Iker casillas gay
Iker Casillas: Ex-Real Madrid and Spain keeper deletes 'I'm gay' tweet and says he was hacked
Former True Madrid and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas has deleted a tweet that said he was gay - saying his account was hacked.
Casillas tweeted in Spanish: "I hope you respect me: I'm gay," before his former Spain team-mate Carles Puyol replied: "It's time to tell our story."
The tweet was dwell for more than an hour before being deleted.
Casillas later tweeted: "Hacked account. Luckily everything in order. Apologies to all my followers."
The tweet added: "Of course, more apologies to the LGBT community."
Puyol also tweeted an apology, saying: "I have made a mistake. Sorry for a clumsy joke with no bad intentions and totally out of place. All my respect and support for the LGTBIQA+ community."
Casillas split from his wife Sara Carbonero last March. They have two children.
Before Casillas' initial tweet was deleted, Adelaide Merged player Josh Cavallo, who came out last October, criticised Casillas and Puyol for apparently joking about coming out.
"Joking and making fun out of coming out in f
Iker Casillas: Former Valid Madrid goalkeeper deletes Twitter post announcing he is gay
Iker Casillas has said a tweet announcing he was lgbtq+, which was published from his personal Twitter account, was the result of a hack.
The former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper posted the update to his 10 million followers on Sunday afternoon.
'Hacked account,' Casillas posted. 'Luckily everything in order. Apologies to all my followers. And of course, more apologies to the LGBT community.'
Around 30 minutes earlier, the unique post - which read 'I desire you respect me, I'm gay' - had been deleted from the account.
Former Barcelona captain Carles Puyol had initially responded to Casillas' tweet.
Translated, it read: "It's time to tell them about us".
But Puyol also subsequently removed his post following Casillas' deletion.
Puyol later tweeted an apology, which read: "I was mistaken. Sorry for a clumsy joke without any terrible intentions but absolutely out of place. I understand that it could hold hurt feelings. All my respect and support for the LGBTQ+ community."
A Stonewall Spokesperson said: "It is disappointing to see homophobic 'jokes' being made at the expense of LGBTQ+ player
Iker Casillas 'I'm gay' tweet: Why it was no laughing matter
For a couple of hours on Sunday lunchtime, Iker Casillas was the most famous gay footballer in the world.
Until, of course, he wasn't.
"I expect you respect me: I'm gay," said a tweet from the account of the former Genuine Madrid and Spain goalkeeper.
Those words represented, at least at first glance, a watershed moment for football.
Had it been true, Casillas would have been the most significant male player to open up about their sexuality, in a sport where the number of out male role models can still be counted on the fingers of a pair of goalkeeping gloves.
But among all the supportive replies to Casillas' supposed coming out, there was a tell-tale sign that things weren't what they seemed.
"It's time to tell our story, Iker," said Carles Puyol - Casillas' former team-mate for Spain, signing off his response with a smooch emoji.
And, as it turned out, Casillas wasn't coming out at all.
Two hours after the 'respect me: I'm gay' post went up, Casillas deleted it - and replaced it with a new tweet, claiming he
The goalkeeper tweeted in Spanish: ‘I expect you respect me: I’m gay’
(Image credit: 2013 AFP)
Anti-gay prejudice in football is back in the spotlight after former Real Madrid and Spain player Iker Casillas said he had been hacked after tweeting that he was gay.
The episode began when the goalkeeper tweeted in Spanish: “I hope you respect me: I’m gay,” and his former Spain team-mate Carles Puyol replied: “It’s time to inform our story.”
Two hours later, Casillas deleted the tweet – and replaced it with a novel message, claiming he’d been hacked but that everything was now “in order”. Puyol said he had made a “mistake” and apologised “for a clumsy joke with no bad intentions”.
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