A Facebook post is claiming that Filipina tennis player Alex Eala was supposedly gifted a “brand-new luxury sports car” by the French sports equipment company Babolat, and that the athlete instead requested that its equivalent financial value be donated for the benefit of young Filipino athletes. This story, though heartwarming, is fake.
A reader asked VERA Files through the Messenger Misinformation Tipline to verify the post, originally published on Oct. 28. A portion of the FB post’s caption read:
“It was supposed to be a celebration — a glittering press event where 19-year-old tennis prodigy Alexandra Eala would accept a brand-new luxury sports car from her sponsor, Bab0lat, as a symbol of her growing global stardom. Cameras were flashing, executives smiling, and fans watching live across Asia. But when Alexandra stepped up to the microphone, she said just three words that froze the room: ‘I don’t need it.'”
It also included a link to an Oct. 27 article that gave more details about the supposed press event. The publisher – litaglobal.com – is full of ads and is not a legitimate sports news website. Litaglobal.com’s archive carries other clickbait stories that appeal to readers’ emotions.
While Babolat does sponsor Eala, who uses their racket in her matches, neither the company nor the athlete’s camp has issued any statements about the gifting of a luxury vehicle. There have also been no reports on the matter from reputable news organizations.
The story failed to provide proof of the event actually happening. The linked article lacked key information such as when and where the “press event” took place, who were the figures present (apart from Eala), or even what kind of car was gifted.
It also carried glaring factual inaccuracies.
Eala is not 19 but 20 years old, contrary to the age written in the FB post and web article. The story also included an image of a man dressed in a suit, ostensibly to represent a Babolat official. A reverse image search of the photo revealed that it was stolen from the LinkedIn profile of a hotelier in Monaco.
Published by Facebook page Daily Tennis Scoop (created on Aug. 27), the fake post is part of a string of clickbait posts about Eala’s success, capitalizing on the tennis star’s growing fame.
As of writing, the fake post has garnered more than 47,000 likes, 2,700 comments and 4,500 shares.
