Ronaldo Promotes Changan—Its Pickups Are Showing Up as Russian Drone Launchers in Ukraine

Chinese automaker Changan Automobile has featured Cristiano Ronaldo and other members of Portugal’s national soccer team in a major advertising campaign, while an investigation has found the company’s pickup trucks being used by Russian forces to launch drones against Ukraine.

The contrast was documented by Ukrainian investigative outlet Slidstvo.Info, which reported on October 14 that Changan Hunter pickups have appeared in Russian military footage being used as mobile launch platforms for strike drones, including Geran-type UAVs.

Earlier in October, Changan’s main website featured members of Portugal’s national team—including Ronaldo—in promotional material for several of the company’s vehicles.

The campaign followed a sponsorship agreement signed between the Portuguese Football Federation and Changan Automobile in May 2026, a partnership the Chinese automaker said would help expand “brand engagement across the region.”

Changan did not leave the Russian market after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Instead, according to automotive analytics group Inovev, the company expanded its presence and increased vehicle exports to Russia as Chinese manufacturers moved into market space vacated by European and American brands.

Slidstvo.Info found that some of those vehicles have since made their way into Russian military use. The Changan Hunter pickup, in particular, has appeared in footage showing Russian forces preparing and launching strike drones.

In July 2026, a Hunter was visible in a video published by Russian propagandist Vladimir Solovyov. The footage showed masked Russian troops assembling drones, including a Geran, fitting them with explosive payloads, and then launching them from the bed of a Hunter pickup traveling at speed.

The same model had surfaced earlier in January 2025 during a publicity campaign by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who announced that five armored Changan pickups were being sent to Russia’s so-called “special military operation.”

The imagery stands in sharp contrast to Changan’s consumer advertising. On the company’s website, five Portuguese national-team players, including Ronaldo, appeared above five different vehicles—including the Hunter—under the slogan: “Stay in the game!”

“In football, staying ‘in the game’ means giving everything—every tackle, every second of concentration, and every precise pass,” Changan Automobile Vice President Mi Mendong said in a press release announcing the sponsorship campaign.

Slidstvo.Info contacted Changan Automobile about the Russian military use of its vehicles but said the company did not respond.

The Portuguese Football Federation was also asked about the issue. It said its sponsorship agreement with Changan had undergone a “rigorous” compliance process.

Earlier, reports emerged that 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.

Help us understand what you already know

Join United24 audience survey