"I'm gay": Iker Casillas tweet surprises the football world - then he's suddenly gone again
Created: 09/10/2022 15:54
By: Armin T. Linder
Iker Casillas in a photo from May 2022. © Atilano Garcia/Imago
"I'm gay": Real Madrid legend Iker Casillas caused a lot of confusion on Sunday afternoon.
Thomas Hitzlsperger also clicked “Like”.
Madrid – A tweet on the official and verified account of goalkeeping legend Iker Casillas (41) with 9.6 million followers caused a surprise in the football world on Sunday (October 9th).
It contained only a few words, which translated mean something like: "I hope you respect me: I'm gay." Plus the hashtag "felizdomingo" for "Happy Sunday".
Iker Casillas: "I'm gay" tweet causes confusion
After around one and a quarter hours, the post had already received around 220,000 likes and 33,000 retweets.
But was it a real outing?
Would this really take place so taciturnly?
The post also confused the Spanish media.
It is not known whether the account was hacked, writes
El Mundo Deportivo
.
Speaks for it or for a joke: After about an hour and a half, the post was deleted again.
Here is a screenshot:
Iker Casillas: Many reports about his private life in Spain
Maybe it was a reaction to the many reports about the ex-keeper's private life and an indication to leave him alone?
Casillas has two sons together with Sara Carbonero, a well-known journalist and TV presenter in Spain.
He is currently associated with a Spanish actress.
Former Spanish national player Carles Puyol (44) gave a no less cryptic reaction on Twitter.
"It's time to tell our story," Puyol wrote.
Iker Casillas: Thomas Hitzlsperger also likes the post
Thomas Hitzlsperger also liked the Casillas post.
The former German national player came out as gay after the end of his active career.
If it was a joke by Casillas, he probably didn't do the acceptance of homosexuality in football any favours.
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Casillas became a legend at Real and in the Spanish national team, he played for the Madrilenians from 1989 to 2015, with whom he won the Primera División five times and the Champions League three times.
He made 725 competitive appearances for Los Blancos before joining Porto in the summer of 2015, where he retired in 2020.
In 2021, the first active professional came out in the NFL.
(lin)