PR aficionados are questioning whether newspaper images of Cristiano Ronaldo smooching with Paris Hilton in an LA nightclub, just 24 hours after the announcment of his record-breaking Real Madrid transfer, are more than just a coincidence.
The perfect PR cocktail of the world's most famous socialite closely man-marking the world's most expensive footballer in the early hours of the morning could not have made better reading for Real Madrid.
The club is looking to cash in on Ronaldo's mind-blowing £80 million transfer fee by following on from the brand success of David Beckham and boosting the club's appeal to the American Latino market.
If rumours are to be believed and the deal with Manchester Utd had been agreed 12 months ago, then Real would've had ample time to plan a campaign of media stunts to convert their new signing into the biggest footballing brand on the planet.
Celebrated PR consultant, Mark Borkowski, reflected perfectly the industry's view of the way football is developing into a multi-layered business machine.
He said that on the lowest level was the game itself. Above that were the great players and their wives and girlfriends. But on the topmost level were the superstar money-spinners like Beckham, who hardly even needed to play football anymore to earn everyone a living.
And now, he added, Cristiano Ronaldo was clawing his way up there too.
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