Castillas gay

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But to condemn an entire sport for the tin-eared and cack-handed Twitter exchanges of two men who ought to have known better wouldn't be fair. Does it really matter? So why is this important? What do George Clooney and Julia Roberts think about rom-coms?

And Puyol? "I hope you respect me: I'm gay," said a tweet from the. But regardless of the intent of the World Cup and European Championship winners, the reaction online was strong and severe. The former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper posted the update.

Casillas retired in following a career that saw him win three Champions Leagues and five La Liga titles at Real Madrid. One of Spain’s top soccer players appeared to come out as gay on Sunday. Those words represented, at least at first glance, a watershed moment for football.

After all, a hacked account or a gay tweet doesn't have the power to change lives - and if it was just a bad joke between old team-mates, reportedly made in response to Spanish media speculation about Casillas' private life… well, so what?

More and more people within football are willing to share their authentic selves, and open up about their sexuality. You'd have to have listened to the stories of Jake Daniels and Zander Murraytalking about the weight they felt as teenagers in the game castilla they believed they had to hide their sexuality to get on in the game.

And, as it turned out, Casillas wasn't coming out at all. The worry for those who work to make football a more inclusive place will be that neither Casillas nor Puyol appeared to be thinking about those things when they posted on social media.

Iker Casillas Carles Puyol

Two hours after the 'respect me: I'm gay' post went up, Casillas deleted it - and replaced it with a new tweet, claiming he'd been hacked but that everything gay now "in order". For a couple of hours on Sunday lunchtime, Iker Casillas was the most famous gay footballer in the world.

Iker Casillas took to Twitter to explain his recent ‘I’m gay' tweet and also apologised to his fans and LGBT community. For a couple of hours on Sunday lunchtime, Iker Casillas was the most famous gay footballer in the world. But among all the supportive replies to Casillas' supposed coming out, there was a tell-tale sign that things weren't what they seemed.

Put simply, neither man seemed to 'get' what it's like to be gay in the beautiful game. And it stirred up the worst elements of social media, who have spent the past 24 castillas hurling homophobic abuse at those - myself included - who point out that there are real-world consequences to the words of Casillas and Puyol.

Sunday's social media exchange would suggest not - but change, however gradual, is clearly happening. Until, of course, he wasn't. 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.

Former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas says his Twitter account was hacked after receiving widespread criticism for posting a tweet claiming he was gay. Iker Casillas has said a tweet announcing he was gay, which was published from his personal Twitter account, was the result of a hack.

Until, of course, he wasn't. A tweet on the Twitter account of former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas said, in Spanish, “I hope you. They reveal all to Ali Plumb Image source, Getty Images. The significance.

He deleted his original post as well. So next time Casillas or Puyol decide to tweet, perhaps it could be about that instead? You'd have to be aware of Lloyd Wilson and Josh Cavalloand the bravery it took both men to open up about their authentic selves in a sport where gay and bisexual men have historically been marginalised.