Ronaldinho Soccer star loses $750,000 Coke deal for drinking Pepsi

All soccer superstar Ronaldinho wanted to do was quench his thirst when he sipped from a can of Pepsi during a press conference. But that seemingly innocuous gesture revived a longstanding feud between soft drink giants Coco Cola and Pepsi.
According to The Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Atlanta-based Coke reacted to Ronaldinho’s two-timing by yanking the Brazilian star’s lucrative $750,000 sponsorship. That’ll teach him to be faithful.
“The fact that the player has appeared with a can of Pepsi was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Coca-Cola marketing chief Marcelo Pontes told the newspaper. “The sponsorship had become embarrassing.”
The press conference was held to promote his new team, Atletico Mineiro, of which Pepsi is a sponsor. Coke’s $750,000 sponsorship deal with Ronaldinho was scheduled to run through 2014.