Viral Ronaldo snub coincides with $4B drop in Coca-Cola's market value

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the Euro 2020 soccer championship group F match between Hungary and Portugal at the Ferenc Puskas stadium in Budapest, Hungary, Tuesday, June 15, 2021. (Tibor Illyes/Pool via AP)

The viral moment from a Euro 2020 press conference on Monday, when superstar Cristiano Ronaldo removed two Coke bottles from the table in front of him, coincided with a $4-billion drop in Coca-Cola's share price.

In a video that was shared widely on social media, Ronaldo encouraged those watching to drink water after moving a pair of Coke bottles out of view.

Coca-Cola's share prices dropped from $56.10 to $55.22 soon after Ronaldo's actions, a 1.6 per cent drop, decreasing in market value from $242 billion to $238 billion.

The company's share price was $54.67 when markets closed on Wednesday.

Coca-Cola, a major sponsor of Euro 2020, said in a statement that "everyone is entitled to their drink preferences" reflecting different "tastes and needs."

Ronaldo's influence is far reaching, as the 36-year-old star has nearly 300 million followers on Instagram and more than 92 million on Twitter.

On Tuesday, he found the back of the net twice in Portugal's 3-0 opening win at Euro 2020 against Hungary to become the all-time leading scorer in European Championship history with 11 goals.

Ronaldo and Portugal next take the pitch on Saturday against Germany, another pivotal Group F match.

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