When Virat Kohli did a Cristiano Ronaldo by cutting ties with Pepsi in 2017

If there is one sports icon that is widely followed and looked upon by a lot of youngsters, then the tag will sit pretty on Cristiano Ronaldo’s head. The football star’s popularity is not only is limited to fans, but many athletes across various sports widely respect him and admire him. Recently, Ronaldo was in news for snubbing a soft drink brand named Coca-Cola during the Euro 2020 press conference.

Apparently, the footballer calmly kept the soft drink aside and instead replaced it with water. The video soon went viral and many sports personalities spoke in the past of how carbonated drinks are not good for athletes and how it hampers fitness in the long run.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli too broke his six-year-long partnership with Pepsi in the year 2017. The 32-year-old felt being the top player in cricket and personally not taking any soft drinks, he felt not to be associated with the brand.  It’s no secret that to be at your top of the game, you need to follow strict work ethics and stay away from junk foods and soft drinks.

When Kohli started to play cricket way back in 2008, he was a bit towards the chubbier side. Since 2013, the Indian skipper brought minute lifestyle changes in his diet and started to stop eating any food which he felt is not ideal for the diet.

When Virat Kohli cut ties with Pepsi

During an interview with CNN-IBN in 2017, the 32-year-old spoke about how he didn’t feel connected with the brand and that’s why he decided to end it. “Things that I’ve endorsed in the past, I won’t take names, but something that I feel that I don’t connect to anymore… I won’t urge others to consume it just because I’m getting money out of it.”

Kohli further elaborated on how he wanted to endorse brands that he himself vouched for or used in the past. “I want to give something to people that I use, myself. One of the reasons, I decided not to sign Pepsi is that I have undergone lifestyle change. And, I am not using that product anymore,” Kohli had said.

Apart from being a modern-day legend of the game, Kohli also is the most popular cricketer across the world when it comes to brand endorsements too. When the Indian skipper snubbed Pepsi, it made his fans and followers happy that he gives importance to values and beliefs rather than just minting money.