Despite the fact that today he is listed for the war between Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin carried out an action that could trigger an international conflict, after he ‘stole’ a Super Bowl ring a few years ago.
The peculiar moment happened in 2022, in a meeting between the Russian prime minister and American businessmen with the purpose of strengthening relations between Russia and the United States, which at that time was presided over by George Bush.
The meeting where Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, was held at the Konstantinovsky Palace, near St. Petersburg, and there was the peculiar but tense moment in which Sandy Weil, at that time president of Citigroup, suggested to Kraft that he show his Super Bowl XXXIX ring to Putin.
The Russian president was fascinated with the ring and after appreciating it he put it in his pocket instead of returning it , as stated in the book The Dynasty, written by Jeff Benedict, which recounts this peculiar moment.
Seeing that Putin did not return the ring, Kraft and his team informed different media of communication what happened, getting the news to go viral quickly mind.
However, and to avoid an international conflict, the United States government He asked Kraft to give the ring to the Russian president and, given the request, decided to publicly declare a message in which he made it official that it was a gift.
“President Putin, a great sports fan, well informed, was clearly captivated by his uniqueness. I decided to give him the ring as a symbol of the respect and admiration I have for the Russian people and his leadership, ”said Kraft, ending the controversial situation.