CNN
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Former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper Iker Casillas said his Twitter account was hacked after he received widespread criticism for posting a tweet claiming he was gay.
In a now-deleted post on his official Twitter account on Sunday, Casillas wrote, “Hope I’m respected: I’m gay.”
In response, former Barcelona captain Carles Puyol replied: “The time has come to tell our story, Iker.”
Casillas, who has two children with his ex-wife, deleted the post shortly after it was sent and later apologized.
The original tweet came amid rumors in the Spanish media that Casillas has been linked to several women since his divorce.
“Hacked account. Thankfully everything is fine. Apologies to all my followers. And of course more apologies to the LGBT community,” he said wrote.
Puyol also later apologized on Twitter post, writes: “I screwed it up. My apologies for a clumsy joke that wasn’t malicious at all but was totally inappropriate.
“I understand that I could have hurt other people’s feelings. All my respect and support for the LGBTIQA+ community.”
Adelaide United player Josh Cavallo, who came out as gay last year, said it was “disappointing” to see two icons of the game joking about the subject.
“It’s disappointing to joke and make fun of coming out in football. It’s a difficult journey that all LGBTQ+ people must go through,” Cavallo continued Twitterbefore Casillas claimed he was hacked.
“To see my role models and legends of the game make fun of coming out and my community is beyond disrespectful.”
Atalanta midfielder Marten de Roon also said the incident highlighted the work that needs to be done to make football more welcoming after the initial posts sparked several homophobic comments.
“Yes, we are at the top of the league (for now). More importantly, social media today still shows how far we are from reality,” he said tweeted.
“Whether Casillas was hacked or not: I see too many posts that are far away. Waiting for the day when that wouldn’t be anything new, because that’s actually the problem here.”
There are very few openly gay men playing professional football and it comes at a time when the sport’s governing bodies say they are trying to make the game more inclusive.
Without directly referring to Casillas’ tweet, the Spanish Sports Council (CSD) released a tweet on Sunday showing its main building adorned with rainbow decorations and reading: “There is much to be done to move forward, educate and raise awareness. We continue.”