CRISTIANO RONALDO risked being banned from the Euros after being accused of “ambush marketing” following the release of his heart rate data.
The 39-year-old Portuguese legend has had a weak tournament so far, failing to score in each of his country’s four games.
He missed a penalty and was reduced to tears in the last 16 as Roberto Martinez’s men overcame Slovenia on penalties after 120 goalless minutes.
But things could still get worse for the Real Madrid and Manchester United legend.
This is linked to Ronaldo’s partnership with fitness company WHOOP – who published his heart rate data from the game against Slovenia on Tuesday.
In response, former head of global sponsorships for Visa and Coca Cola, Ricardo Fort, stated that this is an example of ambush marketing.
This is when a company seeks to associate its product or service with an event that already has official sponsors.
Previously, former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner broke these rules by celebrating a goal for Denmark at Euro 2012 by showing off his Paddy Power underwear.
Bendtner was suspended for one game and fined £80,000.
And Fort believes Ronaldo should receive a similar punishment, which would see him miss Portugal’s quarter-final clash with France on Friday.
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Speaking of X, he said: “This chart is circulating today.
“Cristiano and WHOOP are ambush marketing for Euro 2024. It is illegal and both the player and the company should be fined.”
He added: “The post is about a UEFA game, it uses the names of the two national teams on the field, the score and a player on the field.
“They are implying an association with the event and that is illegal. Not having ‘a competitor as a sponsor’ is not a reason to tolerate infringements.”
WHOOP designs several devices that monitor heart rate, athletic performance and sleep quality.
Fort understands that if Ronaldo’s data had been taken from a home training session – and not during a Euro match – it would not have been an infringement.
The data showed that Ronaldo “entered a state of flow and slowed his heart rate” before scoring the first of Portugal’s three penalties in the shootout.
It then soared to 180 beats per minute when Bernardo Silva scored the decisive penalty.
Portugal will face Germany or Spain in the semi-finals if they overcome their quarter-final tie with France.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
