Ronaldo removes 'Coke' bottles, plumps for water at Euro event

If any publicity is good publicity, Coca-Cola got some on Monday.

Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo, at the Euro 2020 press conference ahead of his team’s first game of the tournament, was seen removing two bottles of the aerated drink placed in front of him. Coke is an official sponsor of Euro 2020, and the bottles were probably a strategic placement.

Ronaldo, obviously in no mood to promote brands, moved the bottles out of sight and shouted ‘Drink water!’ in Portuguese. He matched words with action, grabbing his own water bottle that stayed with him through the media interaction.

Do NOT put Coca Cola in front of Cristiano Ronaldo ?

This is absolutely brilliant ? pic.twitter.com/bw9FYlTOI4

— Goal (@goal) June 15, 2021

Portugal football team manager Fernando Santos, who was also present at the press event, seemed a bit surprised by Ronaldo’s quick action, it’s reported. He, however, retained his Coke bottles. Some relief for the beverage giant.

Role model for kids?

Media reports pointed to some history to Ronaldo’s aversion to being seen with Coke bottles. UK’s Metro said the 36-year-old had previously aired his frustration at his children drinking aerated beverages. Obviously, he wouldn’t want them to watch him share a frame with the bottles.

He has four kids — son Cristiano Ronaldo Jr, 11, daughter Eva and son Mateo, both 4, and daughter Alan Martina, 3.

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At the Global Soccer Awards ceremony, Ronaldo, referring to his eldest born, had said: “We’ll see if my son will become a great footballer. Sometimes he drinks Coke and eats crisps and it irritates me, he knows that. Sometimes I tell my son to take a dip in cold water to recover after a run on the treadmill and he says, ‘Dad, it’s so cold there.’ That’s fine, he is only 10 years old.”

That Ronaldo is a stickler for healthy living is no secret, said Metro. He is said to work out 3-4 hours a day, five times a week. He is also said to maintain a diet of six ‘mini-meals’ a day, peppered with chicken and pasta cooked without salt or oil. No room for Coke there either.