01
When it comes to the "peerless double pride" in football, even if you are not a fan, "Messi" and "Ronaldo" will pop up in your mind.
In the competition for more than ten years, they have almost monopolized all the honors in football and have contributed countless classics to us.
For many fans, their existence is not limited to sports competitions, but also runs through the youth of countless people.
Therefore, when fans learned that Ronaldo was going to China to participate in a friendly match on January 24, their excitement was overflowing.
According to the original plan, Ronaldo will lead the Riyadh Victory team and will face Shanghai Shenhua and Zhejiang on the 24th and 28th respectively.
The game with full expectations was canceled shortly after Ronaldo's arrival...
According to earlier news, the football superstar was unable to play due to physical reasons, and at the press conference, Ronaldo also personally apologized to fans:
"It's a sad day and I want to say sorry to the Chinese fans, but some situations are really out of our control. I've been playing for over 20 years and injuries are inevitable and I regret that. ”
In fact, for football players, injuries and suspensions are regrettable but inevitable.
Although the organizer said that "the game will be postponed" and announced a refund plan, Ronaldo also promised fans:
"Our game is not cancelled and we will be back. I love it, I love the fans and I hope to finish here. ”
But fans still can't hide their disappointment.
Image source: Internet
Everyone is well aware that in the face of the upcoming European Championships and various leagues, the so-called "postponed matches" are actually far away.
So we saw this scene:
When it was announced that the game had been postponed, a large number of fans gathered outside the hotel in protest.
Fans don't know when his next trip to China will be, and they don't know whether he was drenched in the helplessness of being teased by the organizers, or his youth who failed to finish his pen successfully.
In fact, the fans' dissatisfaction with the organizers is not without reason.
As early as a few weeks ago, there was news of Cristiano Ronaldo's injury, and the organizers repeatedly assured fans that he would be available.
Seeing that the competition was about to start, the expectations were full but finally disappointed, which inevitably aroused the anger of the crowd.
What is even more dissatisfied is that a former international player spotted the fans' attention to Ronaldo's itinerary, and took advantage of his position to start a paid live broadcast on social media to make money.
Although the fee is only 3 yuan, thanks to Ronaldo's super popularity, he still made tens of thousands of dollars in a few minutes...
Later, under the report of the fans, he hurriedly went off the air, which still attracted a lot of criticism.
Whether it's the organizers who only care about the immediate interests and the former international players who shamelessly amass wealth, they see sportsmanship as a tool for profit.
In fact, it is not only the fans who are dissatisfied with these "riotous operations", but also Ronaldo himself.
02
On January 24, the entry about "Ronaldo is dissatisfied with the organizer of the China trip" rushed to the hot search and attracted widespread attention.
In fact, at the beginning, whether it was the negotiation of the event, or the initial implementation, even the assistant entertainers had been arranged.
In a show of respect for the star, there was also a live broadcast on the team's plane when it arrived in Shenzhen on January 21.
In the face of the reporter's interview, the person in charge of the organizer answered in the affirmative:
'Cristiano Ronaldo has some injuries in his training routine, but we think it's something that professional footballers are used to. Riyadh Victory Club has a very strict physical recovery and training system, and as far as we know now, Ronaldo will be involved in all the events of this Riyadh Victory China tour. ”
No matter from any point of view, it is a perfect "encounter" with the fans.
However, from the noisy Zhang Luo to the embarrassing end of the game, everything that happened during this period is probably a contradictory hedge between business interests and competitive spirit.
Even if the organizers are conclusive, they cannot ignore the objective facts:
As early as January 19, it was revealed that Ronaldo was injured, but for the sake of box office and word of mouth, he could only declare that "Ronaldo can play".
The inconsistent accounts have caused such an embarrassing ending.
Image source: Internet
An insider once said:
"The Riyadh Victory team's trip to China was finalized early, and the publicity around Ronaldo has been released very early, but if the organizer publicly says before the game that Ronaldo can't play, who else will buy tickets?"
In the face of huge profits, they can only "gamble".
Even though Ronaldo was indeed unable to play for health reasons, the organizers still "persuaded" him many times to "play for the fans", which made him quite dissatisfied.
You know, as a 39-year-old football veteran, he will lead the Portuguese national team to the European Championship this summer, and until then, staying healthy is far more important than business planning.
Secondly, there is the widely circulated photo of "Ronaldo toasting".
Image source: Internet
Let's refute the rumors first, as a professional athlete, Ronaldo drank not wine, but white fungus Sydney soup, which should be an occasion full of commercial etiquette, but the organizers sold a large number of "seats" for profit.
According to media reports, some people spent 35,000 yuan to buy "admission tickets", and after entering the venue, they were told that if they wanted to sit closer, they would have to spend tens of thousands of yuan to buy a seat at the front.
Most of the buyers are Internet celebrities, and the purpose of their entry is not to chase stars, but to benefit from the live broadcast, so that throughout the dinner, Ronaldo was annoyed by autographs, group photos, and live broadcasts.
Image source: Internet
In the end, he only stayed for half an hour and then left in a hurry.
03
If you think the above is outrageous, you would be naïve.
In order to tap the commercial value of this superstar to the extreme, an e-commerce platform also contacted Ronaldo's agent to negotiate with the goods.
Although due to various differences, it was not negotiated. But the other party turned around and contacted the Riyadh Victory team again, hoping to bring the goods live in the name of the team.
But in the promotional poster released, there is only a photo of Ronaldo himself, which is not only disrespectful to the team, but also a violation of his rights and interests.
Image source: Internet
A combination of factors ultimately lowers the threshold infinitely.
It is no exaggeration to say that this is a "disjointed business activity inside and outside", which is full of strong marketing atmosphere from beginning to end, and even makes the competitive taste a little "bland".
When sportsmanship is overly entertaining, injuries are not only for the most loyal fans, but also for sportsmanship itself.
As the world's No. 1 sport, the charm of football does not need to be repeated, and those vivid images that lie in our memories are the most romantic backs of youth.
Whether it is passion or emotion, sports are the common language of mankind, which can overcome all obstacles and bring us the purest touch.
However, when the atmosphere of over-commercialization and entertainment is imbued with it, this enthusiasm becomes less precious.
It's a big gamble built for profit, and the organizers use the love of the fans as a weight, and the health and fame of the stars as capital.
Money and lust are the first "spoils" to be put on the table, and as for the competitive spirit, sportsmanship, and even the physical health of the players, they can be regarded as the weight of the game.
But since it is a "big gamble", you have to bear the consequences.
As everyone knows, there are some things that cannot be put on the table, at least for sports, competitiveness, can cover friendship, but also jump to many levels.
Only it should not be tainted by excessive entertainment.
When the purest desire to win or lose collides with the most shameless greed, it is difficult to find a balance during this period.
Whether it is the collision of passion on the field or the contradiction of business philosophy, we must abide by a criterion:
Respect and understanding are the premise of everything.
Only by separating excessive entertainment from the purest love can competitive sports return to its original appearance and avoid the recurrence of such an embarrassing farce.