10 Things We Learn from Euro 2012: Some Things Are Worse Than Racism Anne-Christine Poujoulat / AFP / Getty Images Danish forward Nicklas Bendtner celebrates after scoring during the Euro 2012 championships football match between Denmark and Portugal on June 13, 2012. Ambush marketing for one - at least, according to UEFA. Racial abuse directed by Croatian fans at black Italian striker Mario Balotelli during the group stages earned the Croatian Football Association a fine of $100,000 from the European football federation, which had vowed to act harshly to stamp out racism. But a day earlier, Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner had been slapped with an even larger fine - $125,000 - as well as a one-match ban. His crime? Flashing the name of a leading Irish sports-betting firm on the waistband of his underpants. Guerrilla marketing is a big no-no for UEFA, and its parent organization FIFA, who aggressively police the ad space in and around stadiums to protect the investments of their sponsors. But the fact that it drew a harsher punishment than racist abuse had many questioning UEFA's priorities. Oh, and don't worry about Bendtner - the bookies graciously agreed to pay his fine. Next: 10 Things We Learn from Euro 2012: Ronaldo Is as Brilliant as He Is Haunted By Leo Messi 10 Things We Learn from Euro 2012: Ronaldo Is as Brilliant as He Is Haunted By Leo Messi Petr Josek / Reuters Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after he scored during the Euro 2012 quarter-final soccer match against Czech Republic at the National stadium in Warsaw, on June 21, 2012. It was a crowning moment of individual brilliance, adding more grist to our own Bobby Ghosh's musings on whether Cristiano Ronaldo could single-handedly drive his team to victory at Euro 2012. Peeling away from his marker, Ronaldo hurled himself at a low cross fizzed in from the right, thumping his header down into the turf and bouncing the ball into the roof of the net for a goal of which any center-forward would have been proud. That was a brilliant reminder that there's so much more to CR7′s game than terrorizing defenders with his speed and control down the flanks or blasting home free kicks from great distances. Having spent the best part of an hour locked in frustration due to the poor passing and anticipation of his teammates, the woodwork for denying him what seemed a certain goal, and referee Howard Webb for turning down many of his appeals, it ought to have been a moment to savor. Ronaldo had booked Portugal passage to the semifinal. But Ronaldo's mind was far, far away. To celebrate his goal, he barged over to the cameras and called out "Messi!" before blowing a sarcastic kiss. MORE: Interview: Lionel Messi on His Sport, Cristiano Ronaldo - and Argentina The impish Argentine Lionel Messi is regarded as the world's best player and the fact that he plays for Barcelona, arch-rivals of Ronaldo's Real Madrid, draws the inevitable comparisons - comparisons that drive Ronaldo mad. The problem, of course, is that rival fans are onto his Messi obsession: Every time he shot and missed against Denmark, the Danish fans chanted "Messi! Messi! And the more he lashes out in frustration, the more of that kind of stick he's going to get. Sadder, still, is the fact that while Ronaldo is blowing kisses on TV, those who know Messi say it's highly unlikely he was even watching. Messi rarely watches games in which he's not involved, and Ronaldo is only an issue for him when he can see him across the pitch in the opposition's jersey. That's one bit of Messi's game that Ronaldo ought to adopt. Next: 10 Things We Learn from Euro 2012: Spain's Silence is Infectious