The value of Coca Cola is said to have dropped in the region of four billion dollars after Cristiano Ronaldo removed two bottles of coke, and replace them with water during a press conference on Monday’s Portugal’s opening of the Euro 2020 game against Hungary.
The Portugal captain, a renowned health fanatic who eschews carbonated drinks and alcohol, underlined his point by holding a bottle of water while saying “agua”, a Portuguese and Spanish word for water.
Though the water brand he used also happened to be owned by Coca Cola, the damage – by a major sports star with 550 million social media followers – was done.
The message was clear and, apart from going viral on social media, it has had an impact on the financial world too.
Coca Cola shares dropped from 56.10 dollars to 55.22 dollars almost immediately after Ronaldo’s gesture, meaning the company’s value fell from 242bn dollars to 238bn dollars.
“It’s obviously a big moment for any brand when the world’s most-followed footballer on social media does something like that,” says Tim Crow, a sports marketing consultant who advised Coca-Cola on football sponsorship for two decades. “Coke pays tens of millions to be a UEFA sponsor and as part of that, there are contractual obligations for federations and teams, including taking part in press conferences with logos and products. But there are always risks.”
Ronaldo is the highest earner on Instagram, commanding $1m per paid post, and with more than $40m in income from the social media platform annually he makes more than his salary at Juventus.
This isn’t the first time Ronaldo has spoken out against carbonated drinks, having previously told of how he tries to avoid his son consuming them.
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