In one of the funniest and smartest marketing plays in recent memory, Surreal Cereal turned budget limitations into viral gold by hiring… not Cristiano Ronaldo, but another man simply named Ronaldo — an everyday, regular guy with zero football trophies but the perfect name.
The campaign instantly captured global attention.
A Masterclass in Creativity Over Cost
Instead of spending millions on Cristiano Ronaldo, Serena Williams, or Michael Jordan, Surreal found ordinary people who shared their names — and let the internet do the rest.
The ads were simple, direct, and hilarious:
“We couldn’t afford that Ronaldo.
So we hired Ronaldo — who is also called Ronaldo.”
Consumers did a double-take, paused, laughed, shared — and suddenly the “other Ronaldo” became a star.
Why the Campaign Worked
Surreal’s approach proved three powerful marketing lessons:
- Celebrity endorsements are overrated when creativity can steal the spotlight
- The phonebook has more ROI than a $2M endorsement deal
- Humour spreads faster than traditional ads, especially online
With barely any budget, the cereal brand generated the kind of buzz that normally requires an entire celebrity PR engine.
A Viral Sensation Built on Pure Wit
The campaign became a social media favourite because of its charming honesty and self-awareness.
It didn’t try to pretend.
It didn’t try to impress.
It simply embraced the absurdity — and the internet loved it.
This campaign stands as a reminder that in modern advertising:
Creativity beats money.
Every. Single. Time.
