Before starring on the pitch on Tuesday, Portuguese and Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo caused a major stir off the field on Monday while attending Portugal’s UEFA Euro 2020 pre-match press conference ahead of their opening game against Hungary.

Shortly after arriving for the press conference, a testy Ronaldo was spotted removing two Coca-Cola bottles from his table before taking questions and that gesture took social media by storm.

After removing the bottles of carbonated drinks, the legendary footballer pulled out a water bottle and looked into the camera to say “Agua!” (Water).

Ronaldo’s dislike for sugary soft drinks is no secret and doesn’t come as a surprise given that the.36-year-old is known to be one of the fittest athletes in the world. 

He’s known for his unyielding discipline and treats his body as a temple, which explains his peak physical condition even at the age of 36. His own son Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. has faced the footballing great’s ire in the past owing to the youngster’s desire to consume such products.

"I'm hard with him sometimes because he drinks Coca-Cola and Fanta sometimes and I'm p*** with him,” Ronaldo once said.

"I fight with him when he eats chips and fries and everything, he knows I don't like it.”

His gesture though seems to have had major ramifications and a negative impact on Coca-Cola with the brand suffering losses worth billions of dollars within a very short span of time following the press conference. 

As per reports, the soft drink giant went from being worth $242 to $238 billion on the stock market - a drop of 1.6% following Ronaldo’s trivial gesture. 

The company’s shares were close to $56.10 at 3 pm when the stock market opened in Europe. However, it nose-dived to $55.22 per share within just 30 minutes after the Portuguese legend’s press conference.

Coca-Cola hasn’t commented on Ronaldo’s gesture and neither has UEFA. Coca-Cola has been a partner of the European Championships since 1988 and they are likely to be unhappy with the influential footballer’s act.

Ronaldo netted twice during Portugal’s 3-0 win against Hungary in their opener at the Euros. His two goals made him the all-time leading goal-scorer (11) at the Euros and he will certainly be eyeing more goals as Portugal target a successful title defence after winning the previous edition of the tournament in 2016.

Featured photo: Alex Pantling / AFP

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Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro - Forward