Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are two legends of the beautiful game. They have entertained the world almost two decades now. The fact is that both of them are still managing to do it, displaying astonishing longevity.
Not only they broke the barriers they faced on the soccer pitch, Ronaldo and Messi seem to be breaking the internet as well. Recently, they took part in an advertisement campaign that seems to be on everyone’s lips today.
Did Cristiano Ronaldo beat Lionel Messi in a game of chess?
For context, Louis Vuitton managed to land two of the biggest sporting stars in the world for their latest campaign. They have gone for Ronaldo and Messi’s face for the new project, “Victory Is a State Of Mind”.
Victory is a State of Mind. @Cristiano and #LionelMessi captured by @annieleibovitz for @LouisVuitton. In addition to a long tradition of crafting trunks for the world’s most coveted sporting trophies, the Maison celebrates two of the most talented football players today. pic.twitter.com/AU9kPyI2wL
— Louis Vuitton (@LouisVuitton) November 19, 2022
Although the image was groundbreaking for the entire world, which isn’t surprising, fans noticed that Messi and Ronaldo didn’t even tag each other. This brought the question of whether both of them met for the photoshoot or the image was edited.
So the Louis Vuitton photoshoot with Messi/Ronaldo features a game between Magnus and Hikaru from 2017. But… why specifically that one? pic.twitter.com/ETRWaawtra
— GothamChess (@GothamChess) November 20, 2022
In addition to that, some Twitter users have pointed out another interesting fact that blows our minds. Many have found out that it is no accident, the way the chess pieces have been arranged in the image. What is astonishing is that Louis Vuitton chose to adopt a scenario from a real-life situation. It is said that the pieces are based on the game between chess legend Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura back in 2017.
The main reason for choosing that iconic game would be because it ended in a draw. It was an equally biased match of chess where both Magnus and Hikaru made some good counter plays. However, the game ended in a tie.
Second greatest rivalry of our time mimicking the greatest https://t.co/9ncVVgUnzs
— Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) November 19, 2022
This suggests that both Ronaldo and Messi are the greats of the beautiful game. Just like Carlsen and Nakamura. Speaking of the chess world #1, he tweeted about the iconic image as well. He said, “Second greatest rivalry of our time mimicking the greatest.” Magnus’ acknowledges that the Messi-Ronaldo is a great rivalry, but only second to his and Nakamura’s.