A video widely shared on social media and some news outlets, claiming to show a drone tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo in Funchal, Madeira, after his last World Cup appearance, has been confirmed as fake.
The footage, which depicted a stylized CR7 figure performing his signature jump under the national flag with the message "thank you, 7", was generated using artificial intelligence (AI). The video's creator, a young Peruvian content creator, confirmed the images were made with the PixVerse app and are clearly marked as AI-generated.
Discrepancies with spectator footage, the absence of official news about the event, and confirmation from Madeira's regional government debunk the video's authenticity. The creator emphasized that the misuse of the images as real lies with those who spread them.
