ss Australia is in uproar after Alex de Minaur openly accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of abusing his power, claiming he tried to force him to take part in LGBT promotion campaigns at upcoming tennis tournaments. De Minaur fired back bluntly: “He can force anyone he wants — but not me.” Albanese immediately responded with a sarcastic jab, questioning the tennis star’s loyalty after his rise to fame

BREAKING NEWS: Anthony Albanese was accused by Alex de Minaur of abusing his power and forcing him to participate in the LGBT campaign – The Prime Minister responded sarcastically and received a 10-word “slap” that left Australia dumbfounded

One of the most shocking cases of 2025 just broke out in the Australian sports and political world when the country’s number 1 men’s tennis player, Alex de Minaur, publicly accused Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of abusing his power to force him to participate in LGBT awareness and propaganda campaigns in Australia as well as in the tennis tournaments he competes in 2026.

The incident started with a live interview on ABC News last night, when de Minaur – just returned from the ATP Finals 2025 – was asked about the reason for declining an invitation from the government to participate in the “Sport Proud Australia 2026” campaign, a major program sponsored by the Ministry of Sports to promote gender equality and LGBT rights in sports.

In a calm but firm voice, de Minaur declared:  “He can force anyone to do what he wants, but not me. I don’t like the promotion of these things in sports.”

The statement immediately caused a storm online.

Just a few hours later, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – who is famous for being a strong supporter of the LGBT community (he is the first Prime Minister to participate in the Sydney Mardi Gras parade in 2023) – responded sarcastically on the official X account:

“A kid who became famous thanks to the support of Australians, but now lives like a European prince and refuses to repay his own people?”

Albanese’s statement refers to the fact that de Minaur lives mainly in Monaco (to enjoy tax incentives) and grew up mostly in Spain, despite representing Australia in international competition.

The statement was quickly criticized as “below the belt” and “classist”, with more than 2.8 million negative mentions overnight.

But the real shock came less than five minutes later. Alex de Minaur posted a story on Instagram with a photo of him holding the old Australian Open junior trophy, with a short but sharp text of only 10 words:

“Proud to be Australian. My country, my choice, my voice.”

The statement left Australia speechless. Hashtag #MyCountryMyChoice and #Demon10Words immediately climbed to the top 1 global trending with more than 5.6 million posts. De Minaur’s video story reached 48 million views after only 12 hours.

The Australian online community is deeply divided. De Minaur’s supporters – the majority in the sports world – called this “a historic slap in the face of politicians who like to coerce”. Nick Kyrgios tweeted: “Demon just ended him.

Respect.” Lleyton Hewitt, Alex’s mentor, posted a photo of the two hugging each other with the caption “Proud Aussie”.

The remaining faction, mainly from the LGBT+ community and Labor voters, criticized de Minaur for being “socially irresponsible”. Equality Australia released a statement: “Sports stars have a responsibility to use their platforms to promote equality.

Refusal is not neutrality – it is silence in the face of injustice.”

Anthony Albanese then tried to appease him with a longer post, calling for “dialogue” and “better understanding”, but it was too late. His initial statement was called “sarcastic and divisive” in every newspaper from The Australian to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Tennis Australia issued a neutral statement: “We respect the freedom of expression of athletes. Alex is the pride of Australian tennis.”

Alex de Minaur, who is notoriously private and rarely speaks about politics, broke his silence in the strongest way. He is currently preparing for the 2026 season with the goal of reaching the top 5 in the world and defending his title at ATP 500 tournaments.

This story is not just a dispute between a tennis player and the Prime Minister. This is a battle between individual freedom and social responsibility, between pure sport and politicization.

And with 10 words, Alex de Minaur reminded Australia:  An athlete has the right to choose how to love his country – without having to follow anyone else’s script.