For fans around the world, football is not just a sport. It is a religion. So, when one of their greats, Cristiano Ronaldo, moved two Coke bottles out of the frame in a news conference last week and held up his “agua” instead, the people listened. And when football fans listen, they listen with their wallets. In the aftermath of the interview, Coca-Cola stock plummeted 1.6%. If you ever wondered if one man could make a tremendous difference in the world, here is your answer. And if the one man is Cristiano Ronaldo, a 36-year-old Portuguese football phenom who has kept his body in great shape, the makers of a sugary soft drink are left in the dust.
The Snub
When Cristiano Ronaldo sat down to be interviewed before his recent game against Hungary and removed two Coke bottles from view at the UEFA European Championship, touting his water instead, he exacerbated a problem that many brands have faced with social influencers, athletes, and stars. They have an awful lot of power to sway public opinion. In this case, Coca-Cola lost $4 billion of market cap when its stock price plunged last week. Ronaldo may be just one man, but he is a very well-known man. He was the very first person to reach 300 million Instagram followers, and with good reason. In a world filled with football fans, he is the all-time top scorer in the European Championship summer tournament with 11 goals, and the oldest Portuguese player. Even if you don’t love Portugal as a team, you’ve got to love a man of moxie like this. (And maybe he’s onto something with his water drinking!)
But it begs the question of how one man who has 300 million followers (about 4% of the world’s population) can dictate what people eat and drink. Companies appreciate the star power when a big name can draw consumers to their products. (Think Roger Federer and Uniqlo, Steph Curry with Under Armour, and Lionel Messi with Adidas.) But the strategy can backfire when a man like Ronaldo has such clout, even though he is not selling Coke to start with.
