Ronaldo made a bold statement at a press conference this week by removing two Coca-Cola bottles from view, costing the company $5.2 billion.
The press conference took place to promote Portugal’s upcoming Euro 2020 opener against Hungary.
In the video below, Ronaldo can be seen very deliberately removing two coke bottles from the table in front of him, which was clearly displayed on behalf of the said sponsor of the European Championships.
Soon after, he takes out his own water bottle, gesturing to the amassed journalists at the conference that they should “drink water”.
Do NOT put Coca Cola in front of Cristiano Ronaldo 😠
This is absolutely brilliant 🤣 pic.twitter.com/bw9FYlTOI4
— Goal (@goal) June 15, 2021
Despite a positive reaction from fans – and probably most health experts – this did not go down well for the soft drink giant.
Shortly after Ronaldo’s stunt, Coca-Cola’s market value plummeted by $5.2 billion.
To put that into perspective, at the start of the conference, Coca-Cola’s shares were worth $73.02 each. And by the end of it, they’d fallen to $71.85 each, marking a 1.6 per cent dip.
Ronaldo may be in football, but he’s definitely got an Elon Musk-esque vibe right now.
The marketing manager of Coca-Cola when Ronaldo moved the bottles: pic.twitter.com/KhdasmQJIc
— Luke Duff (@luke_duff) June 15, 2021
The legendary soccer player is famously health-conscious.
With a high-protein, low-fat diet that avoids sugary foods at all costs, Ronaldo manages to stomach up to six meals a day to maintain his Adonis aesthetic.
And despite Coca-Cola’s disastrous downfall, the stunt worked out quite nicely for Ronaldo, who shortly after went on to become the all-time top scorer in the history of the European championship – following a late penalty in the opening game against Hungary in Budapest.
Portugal coach, Fernando Santos had less to campaign for as he sat comfortably next to Ronaldo in the press conference, electing for his two coke bottles to remain in position.
Who knows how much further the brand could have fallen if he’d joined in!
