World-class footballers are young, wealthy and famous. The three combination makes them potential for endorsements.
Over the years footballers have earned themselves money outside the field by starring in a number of advertisements. But some however, are considered bad, and that is according to many news publications, critics, consumers, as well as the internet population in general..
One of them, is Cristiano Ronaldo.
The superstar footballer has been hired by numerous mega brands in the past, including Nike, Samsung and EA Sports. But he is also no stranger to awful advertisements.
This time, is when he was endorsed by Shopee, a Singaporean e-commerce company, his advertisement by many, is considered one of the worst of all kind.
In the advertisement, the star is shown scoring a free-kick, before performing his trademark ‘Sii’ celebration. Th cheering crowd then suddenly turned quiet over notifications from Shopee.
The confused Ronaldo is then approached by the referee who showed him an 'orange' card with the Shopee logo. Ronaldo then said "Shopee" to the referee with animated grin, before dancing along with four other men with the ‘Baby Shark’ song by saying "Shopee", as he enthusiastically taps his phone.
The original video which was created for Shopee Singapore, has also been tailored for different audience, like for Indonesia, Philippines, and other countries that Shopee operates.
In the initiatives, Shopee users and fans of Ronaldo can also get a chance to be closer to the iconic athlete with exclusive contents on Shopee Live.
"i wish Shopee ads would stop playing every time i watch a YouTube video," said a Twitter user. "Cristiano Ronaldo's Shopee is the worst ad I have ever seen in my life," said another user.
The advertisements are meant to promote Shopee's annual shopping campaign, the '9.9 Super Shopping Day', which occurs from August 16 to September 9, featuring offers and entertainment, such as free shipping, cashback vouchers up to $140 and discounts from partner banks.
The advertisements that feature Ronaldo, was premiered on the first day, simultaneously in seven countries.
This was because the Portuguese soccer player has become Shopee's brand ambassador.
In a statement, Shopee's CEO Chris Feng said: "Cristiano Ronaldo is a figure who inspires many people and his dedication to the world of football is in line with our commitment to Shopee users.”
Ronaldo added that: "I am proud to be Shopee's brand ambassador because we have the same ambition to be the best in our field. I always improve my game for fans and teams, just like Shopee who continues to innovate to benefit its users.”
Shopee brought Cristiano Ronaldo on board as its regional brand ambassador, about a year after endorsing South Korean K-pop girl group BLACKPINK as its first-ever regional brand ambassador, whose advertisements met controversies in Indonesia.