How Football Star, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Coca-Cola Snub Cost Company $4 Billion

When world-famous footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo nonchalantly pushed aside two bottles of Coca-Cola at a pre-match press conference on Tuesday, it may have cost the soft drink maker something in the ballpark of $4 billion.

On the eve of Portugal's Euro 2020 opener against Hungary, the world’s second-highest international goal scorer pushed aside two bottles of Coca-Cola placed in front of him while taking his seat, voicing the Portugese word “agua” to urge people to drink water instead.

Notably, the company is one of the sponsors of the tournament.

The action may have potentially knocked off nearly $4 billion in market value for the bottling company, which fell 1.6 per cent after this remark, Deccan Herald reports.

Coca-Cola responded to the incident by saying that “everyone is entitled to their drink preferences,” multiple media outlets reported.

The Juventus star also impressed on the football field, scoring two goals in his side’s victorious showing, making him the highest scorer in the history of the European Championship and taking him within spitting distance of the all-time goal-scoring record.

Several Twitter users lauded what they saw as Ronaldo’s endorsement of healthier dietary options.

Ronaldo has often been lauded as one of the healthiest sportspersons in the world and has talked about the importance of discipline in diet and fitness on several occasions.

However, some people were less impressed by the 36-year old sports star’s snub, pulling him up for an advertisement he had done for Coca-Cola in 2006 and foisting charges of “hypocrisy”.