Despite love for Lionel Messi, Warren Sapp's daughter reveals true feelings for Cristiano Ronaldo after Portugal defeats Spain in Nations League final

Warren Sapp, the Hall of Fame defensive tackle who spent 13 seasons in the NFL, is lending his expertise as Colorado’s pass rush coordinator these days. And athletic genius runs deep in the Sapp family. His daughter, Mercedes Sapp, played as a goalkeeper for the Bulls soccer team in college and has always been a big fan of the game, especially Lionel Messi.

However, after Portugal’s win over Spain in the UEFA Nations League final, Mercedes turned her admiration to Cristiano Ronaldo.

The game ended in a 2-2 draw and was decided by a 5-3 penalty shootout in Portugal’s favor. Ronaldo left the game in the 88th minute due to a muscle injury, missing the shootout. On the sidelines, too nervous to watch, he fell to his knees in celebration as his team won.

A video of the moment made its way to Instagram, which Mercedes shared on her Instagram story on Sunday. She wrote:

“Even though i love messi…. the passion that ronaldo has for his country, the sport, is top f* notch. i have a different level of respect for him 🙂‍↕️”

Warren Sapp's daughter Mercedes Sapp's Instagram story (Image credit: Instagram/@cedesapp)

---

What does Warren Sapp’s daughter do?

Warren Sapp’s daughter, Mercedes Sapp, has worked at the University of South Florida as a student-athlete enhancement coordinator since 2022. She helps college athletes develop their personal growth, values, mental health and life after sports. According to her profile on USF's website, she also educates them on NIL rights, financial literacy and diversity and inclusion.

She earned her Master’s degree in Communication Management with a focus on Leadership from the University of North Florida in 2019. While there, she played Division I soccer as a goalkeeper and became the first student-athlete to win the Goalkeeper of the Year award in 2020.

That season, she started all 16 games, made a save percentage of 82.3% and recorded eight shutouts, a single-season record for UNF’s Division I era.

Before UNF, she spent three years at the University of Missouri, where she also played soccer and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication with a minor in Spanish.