by Rosie Alfatlawi
He’s one of the most famous and successful footballers of all time. Cristiano Ronaldo’s face is known and loved across the globe, and now it has appeared in an advert shot in Cairo - or has it?
The Real Madrid striker has annoyed Egyptians after using an actor wearing a ‘green screen mask’ to film his scenes in the city for a recent ‘Egyptian Steel’ commercial
Ronaldo shared the advert last Saturday on his official Facebook page, where it has already received 3.2 million views.
The video seems to show the Portuguese striker riding horseback next to the pyramids, floating on the Nile, running through the streets of the capital and playing with Egyptian children.
Locals have been quick to point out, however, that these images are not authentic.
من كواليس اعلان رونالدو
— حسام غالي (@HossamGhaly__14) May 29, 2017
تم تصوير الاعلان بواسطة دوبلير ورونالدو مجاش مصر pic.twitter.com/nwJpIGT3pD
From the background of Ronaldo's advert. The ad was shot using a body double and Ronaldo didn't come to Egypt.
Given that Ronaldo earns tens of millions of euros a year, much of which comes from advertising fees, Egyptians were understandably unimpressed at the no-show.
Ronaldo’s advert was fabricated. And here is his body double!
إعلان رونالدو مش بس سئ في إنه قربان من أبو هشيمة لنظام السيسي لكن تقنيا كارثي لأن واضح تركيب صور رونالدو في مصر وده بيناقض هدف الإعلان اصلا
— حمدي (@ELD0DGE) May 27, 2017
Ronaldo's ad is not only bad because it represents Abou Hashima's gift to the Sisi regime, but it is also a technical disaster, because he is clearly photoshopped into Egypt, which defeats the purpose.
Ahmed Abou Hashima is the CEO of Egyptian Steel. He tweeted the following about Ronaldo’s participation in promotional campaign.
Very proud for such partnership and to have you as our brand ambassador for #Egyptian_Steel. @Cristiano
— Ahmed Abou Hashima (@AhmedAbuHashima) May 27, 2017
Stay tuned for part 2#abouhashima https://t.co/mk8U1mjwu7
Still, not everyone was negative about the ad, which shows off some of Egypt’s best bits.
This latest advert comes after relatives of the footballer reportedly visited Egypt earlier this month in order to promote tourism in the land of the Pharaohs, and reassure potential visitors of its safety.
#EgyptWatch Cristiano Ronaldo's Family visiting pyramids and Egyptian Museum https://t.co/JGWNvCHIrk #egypt #مصر
— Egypt Watch ® ™ (@egyptwatch_org) May 17, 2017
Still, even if you can brush aside his failure to visit the country he was promoting, Cristiano’s Arabic (listen right to the end) is borderline unforgivable. As one Facebook user wrote, "Don’t speak Arabic again, Ronaldo!"
RA
