QPR football player and former England National Team stalwart Rio Ferdinand has found himself in hot water from fans over his recent endorsement of online gaming site Casino Floor. The ex-Manchester United star was recently named a brand ambassador for the site and while it is an exciting way to build up his business ties once his playing days are over, Ferdinand’s decision to endorse Casino Floor was met with intense backlash from fans who branded the footballer “irresponsible” and “money-grabbing.”
The backlash, it seems came after Ferdinand sent a tweet promoting the site and a promotion to anybody who signs up and plays on that specific day. Unfortunately for Ferdinand, Twitter trolls came out of the woodworks and teed off on his decision to associate himself with an online gaming site.
While there’s nothing wrong with Ferdinand’s tweet, he might have erred by not filtering his tweet with an “adult content” alert on the page. Best intentions aside, Ferdinand’s decision to partner with Casino Floor will come with inherent criticism that’s really out of his control. His stature – he has over six million Twitter followers – in the world of English football will always put his words and actions under the proverbial microscope. Ferdinand is regarded as one of the best defenders English football has had in recent memory. He’s also compiled a career that includes numerous titles with Manchester United and 81 caps for the Three Lions, with spells as the team’s captain and vice captain sprinkled in.
Naturally, tweets like the one he sent out promoting Casino Floor will draw the attention of a lot of people so when it comes to unfortunate incidents like this, Ferdinand might be served to better understand Twitter’s filtering features, which includes the aforementioned adult content alert and the always handy “block” feature.
Meanwhile, Ferdinand’s name has also been thrown around as a possible candidate to lead Manchester United’s youth academy and spearhead a dramatic shift in the academy’s approach to youth development.
According to numerous reports coming out to the UK, Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal is eyeing an “Ajax-style” approach to youth development, a reference to the Dutch football giant’s renowned approach in hiring its own legends to help develop the team’s emerging young talent.
That’s a position van Gaal thinks Ferdinand would excel in once his playing days are finished, although if you asked the team’s Dutch boss, he probably wouldn’t mind seeing good ‘ol Rio anchor Manchester United’s defense in the last legs of the current English Premier League season.
United currently sits in fourth place in the EPL table, eight points off of league-leading Chelsea and a point off of third-place Arsenal for the last automatic spot to next season’s Champions League.
