Iker Casillas appeared to become the latest high-profile footballing figure to come out as gay in a social media update on Sunday.
But his tweet has since been deleted with Spanish media speculating he and his former Spain teammate Carles Puyol were kidding around.
The ex- Real Madrid goalkeeper was married to Sara Carbonero until March 2021 and they had two children together during their five year relationship.
He tweeted: "Espero que me respeten: soy gay. #felizdomingo" which translates to "I hope you respect me: I'm gay. #felizdomingo".