Don’t Be Fooled: “Cristiano Ronaldo to Return Ballon D’Or”

“Cristiano Ronaldo returns the Ballon D’Or” blares the headline on Mundo Deportivo. It’s outlandish, but apparently believable enough for sites such as CalcioMercato.com to republish.

The “story” is a joke MD is playing on everyone. December 28th is the Holy Innocents' Day in Spain, which is the equivalent of April Fool’s Day in that pranks, jokes and hoaxes are common.

MD hasn’t confirmed this as a hoax, but the report is too crazy to be believed, given that it was published on the 28th. It details that Ronaldo has talked to the director of France Football to return the award after Real Madrid lost el Clasico to Lionel Messi’s Barcelona.

Ronaldo is quoted saying he must return it since he didn’t deserve it.

I rate the possibility of Ronaldo returning an individual award because he feels someone else deserves it more at 0%. Don’t be fooled today.