Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas on Sunday tweeted that he is gay. In a now deleted post, the Real Madrid legend said,” I hope you respect me: I’m gay.” The 41-year-old was married to sports journalist Sara Carbonero between 2016 and 2021, and they have two children together.

Casillas later tweeted that his account was hacked, tweeting, “Hacked account. Luckily everything in order. Apologies to all my followers. And of course, more apologies to the LGBT community.”

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Who is Iker Casillas?

Iker Casillas Fernández is a former goalkeeper for the Spanish national team. He is widely ranked among the best goalkeepers of all time. He is renowned for his superb shot-stopping skills, agility, and athleticism. Casillas is one of the select few players to have played in more than 1000 professional games. He also holds the record for the most clean sheets for both the Spanish national team and the UEFA Champions League.

Casillas was born on May 20, 1981, in Móstoles, province of Madrid, to Mara del Carmen Fernández González, a hairdresser, and José Luis Casillas, a government employee in the Ministry of Education. Unai Casillas, Casillas’ younger brother, played central midfield for CD Móstoles when he was seven years old.

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During his 16 years at Real Madrid, the former goalkeeper won several prestigious awards, including three Champions League wins and five La Liga championships.

With the Spanish national squad, Casillas also won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and two European Championships while making a total of 167 appearances. He was at his best at the 2010 WC at South Africa, where he captained Spain to their first ever title. In doing so, he became the then third ever goalkeeper to captain a World Cup winning side.

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In addition to being voted as the best goalkeeper that tournament, he was also named to the 2010 World Cup Dream Team and won the Golden Glove. He maintained a record five clean sheets, all of which were in the knockout rounds. In the whole tournament, he only allowed a record two goals, and saved a crucial penalty in extra time during his team’s quarterfinal triumph over Paraguay. On 4 August 2020, Casillas officially announced his retirement from professional football.