You do not have to look far on social media to find images and videos of footballers in unlikely or bizarre situations. Scroll through TikTok and you may soon stumble across Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo cutting each other's hair, or boarding the Titanic in Edwardian dress. It will become even harder to spot what is real and what is, in AI terms, deepfake. After all, who really thinks Messi and Ronaldo have been serving burgers? But is there a point at which players and clubs will try to draw the line?

Source: BBC March 02, 2026 09:14 UTC