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Russian Spies Used Cristiano Ronaldo YouTube Videos to Send Coded Messages to Moscow
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![Ivan_khomenko]( "Ivan Khomenko")
-21d0b63c17f6020e4df75f6c6f9a2f4f.jpg "Ivan Khomenko")
German authorities uncovered a Russian espionage operation in which agents used the comment sections of YouTube videos featuring Cristiano Ronaldo to transmit coded messages to Moscow.
According to The Sun, the case, which dates back to 2011, revealed that a couple living in Germany had been engaged in covert intelligence activities for over two decades.
Andreas and Heidrun Anschlag, who resided in Marburg, a town north of Frankfurt, were initially perceived as an ordinary married couple. Holding Austrian passports—later found to be falsified—they presented themselves as citizens with South American heritage. Andreas worked as an automotive engineer, while Heidrun managed their household and cared for their daughter, who was unaware of her parents’ real identities.
According to German journalist Mika Beuster, there were few indicators of their clandestine activities aside from occasional lengthy phone calls conducted outdoors, even during the winter months.
The couple was recruited before the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and operated as intelligence agents for 23 years. During this period, they transmitted classified information from NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations to Soviet and later Russian intelligence services. Reports indicate that they were compensated with an annual salary of approximately $98,000.
Investigations also uncovered their collaboration with a Dutch Foreign Ministry official, who provided classified documents on a monthly basis. These materials were discreetly transferred through ‘dead drops,’ with USB drives placed in concealed locations for collection.
Initially, the Anschlags relied on radio transmissions and satellite links to communicate with their handlers. However, as digital platforms became more prevalent, they adapted their methods. In early 2011, they created a YouTube account under the username @Alpenkuh1, while Russian intelligence established an account under the username @crsitanofootballer.
According to report, the spies used the comment sections of Cristiano Ronaldo’s football videos to exchange coded messages, former BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera stated. Investigators determined that the comments contained sequences of punctuation marks that could be converted into numerical codes, referencing pre-arranged messages.
Examples of their coded exchanges included comments like, “Great video, and the song is amazing,” followed by a response from the Kremlin-linked account stating, “He runs and plays like the devil.”
German intelligence closely monitored the couple’s activities, leading to a raid on their residence in October 2011. Reports indicate that Heidrun was in the process of receiving an encrypted transmission through a radio device when authorities entered the premises. In the ensuing commotion, she disconnected the device.
In July 2013, a German court sentenced Andreas to six and a half years in prison, while Heidrun received a five-and-a-half-year sentence. The Dutch Foreign Ministry official involved in the operation was sentenced to 12 years. By late 2015, the Anschlags were released and subsequently deported to Russia.
Earlier, Russian spies Anna and Artem Dultsev were arrested in Slovenia in January 2023 on espionage charges. Operating from Ljubljana, they allegedly used the city as a base to travel across NATO and EU countries, transmit orders from Moscow, and deliver funds to sleeper agents. Upon their return to Russia in a prisoner exchange, Vladimir Putin awarded them the Order of Courage, as revealed in the December issue of Razvedchik magazine.
