Coca-Cola lost $4 billion in market value after soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo suggested people should drink water instead. ???https://t.co/SSv3mY4NQM pic.twitter.com/uZTySSGAK3

— Gilly Vanilly ? (@GillyBerlin) June 16, 2021

I love watching sports events, but I always wondered how they pick their sponsors.

Christiano Ronaldo just shocked officials during a press conference by replacing two bottles of Coca-Cola with a bottle of water.

For those of you who don’t know this guy—he is one of the best soccer players of our time. He is known to be quite a character who doesn’t really care about others judging him. His fans love him for his extraordinary skills in the game, and he is a role model for millions of young boys and girls around the world.

Ronaldo never made a secret out of disliking the sugary beverages from Georgia. He previously stated in an interview that he gets really upset when his son wants to drink Coca-Cola.

The man who is known to eat six meals and to take five naps a day just started an important conversation about sponsorships at big sports events.

I was always wondering why companies like Coca-Cola or McDonald’s are the official sponsors of soccer World Cups, Olympics, and major sports in the United States. As a snowboarder, I never understood why every rider has at least one energy drink sponsor. A few years ago, the topic already came up when a group of frustrated snowboarders started the “Drink Water” project.

But now, Ronaldo is using his fame to get this conversation going on a bigger level.

Why would any kid who wants to play soccer like Ronaldo even think about drinking sugary beverages? Why is the UEFA even promoting this counterintuitive choice for an athlete?

And even more interesting: is he going to get fined for saying the right thing?

I tip my hat to Ronaldo for speaking up about this important issue in professional sports—and I am sure I am not the only one.

And as a German, I can’t wait for Ronaldo smashing our team this Saturday—because my relationship status with the German soccer association (DFB) is complicated, but that’s another story for another day.

Athletes are role models, and they have to use their popularity to be of benefit—and I welcome that this is happening more and more.