Iker Casillas Faces Backlash After Joking About Being Gay
Iker Casillas, the former Real Madrid and Spain player, tweeted that he was gay, but later claimed his account was hacked.
The incident began when Casillas tweeted in Spanish: “I hope you respect me: I’m gay,” and his former Spain team-mate Carles Puyol replied: “It’s time to tell our story.”
Two hours later, Casillas deleted the tweet and replaced it with a new message, claiming he’d been hacked but that everything was now “in order”.
The initial exchange led to thousands of replies, most of which were of a homophobic nature, according to The Mirror.
Many have accused the pair of making light of the struggles that genuinely gay sportspeople face.
Amal Fashanu, who campaigns against discrimination in football, called on Casillas to “show evidence of the hack”.
Fashanu, the niece of late football star Justin Fashanu, who was the first professional footballer to be openly gay, told The Sun she was “hugely disappointed” by the actions of the two players.
The episode has sparked a wider debate about homophobia in football, with the upcoming World Cup in Qatar highlighting the issue.
Craig Bratt, the media officer for Exeter City, linked the episode with the tournament, saying it “felt like a kick in the teeth” in a year when a World Cup is being held in a country where he is illegal.
The game is changing, with “LGBTQ+ leagues marking landmark anniversaries” and “LGBTQ+ fans attending games as their inclusive selves, the sport is more inclusive than it’s ever been”, said Jack Murley, the presenter of the BBC’s LGBT Sport Podcast.
Iker Casillas and Carles Puyol’s actions have been criticised by many, including **The Guardian’s Jonathan Liew**, who wrote that prejudice can arrive in different forms, including irony or jest.
The incident has sparked a renewed focus on the need for football to do more to support players who are brave enough to talk about their sexuality publicly.
On the issue of homophobia in football, **Amal Fashanu** said that “we still see a lot of homophobic abuse online and it has to end”.
The authorities, especially the FA and the Premier League, will be reminded how much more still needs to be done to support players who are brave enough to make that step and talk about their sexuality publicly, said Murley.