Heineken, who are the official partner of UEFA Euro 2020, set up an elaborate prank against Rio Ferdinand to sum up the friendly rivalries of international football.

Robbie Savage fronted up the practical joke to ensure that it encapsulated one of the international game's longest-standing rivalries: Wales vs England.

The pair were once fierce rivals on the pitch but they are now good friends as pundits.

Ferdinand was led to believe he was being inducted into the Heineken ‘Hall of Fame’, featuring portraits of international football icons.

Robbie Savage had a portrait of Rio Ferdinand painted in a Wales shirt

After participating in an online portrait sitting, the Englishman attended a private viewing at an East London gallery to see the finished artwork for the very first time.

However, there was a problem.

The 'artist', who was played by an actress, thought Ferdinand was Welsh. Thus, the painting featured him in a Wales shirt.

Ferdinand burst out laughing when he saw himself wearing the Welsh colours and draped in the Welsh national flag.

Rio Ferdinand had a portrait painted of him in a Wales shirt

Ferdinand then explains he is in fact English and wants the painting to be redone.

Just when the 'artist' gets on the phone to say there has been a major problem, Savage bursts into the room and reveals that he has been behind the whole prank.

The video makes for brilliant viewing and you can watch it below:

Ferdinand said: “I was genuinely honoured to be selected for the Hall of Fame and I had no idea what to expect. My first reaction of the painting is that the artist had done me a favour on the calves, but then I saw the Welsh shirt and flag, the daffodils. That flag and me don’t go! I played 81 times for England and I’m not going to be exhibited as a rival Welshman!

"After the initial shock, I was starting to get properly wound up, but then my mate Robbie appeared with a huge grin on his face and I realised that I’d properly been stitched up and he was just stoking the rivalry ahead of the tournament starting.

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“Ever since Wales reached the Semi Finals of UEFA EURO 2016 and England didn’t, I’ve had to put up with Savage’s jokes and banter about Welsh superiority. Now, I’ve got to think of a way to get him back.”

Savage said: “Rio is a proud Englishman and legendary prankster in his own right, so the planning to get one over on him had to be meticulous. Watching his ego inflate and then come crashing back down to the earth clutching a bunch of daffs and wearing the Welsh flag was brilliant. 1-0 to Wales.”

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It really goes to show that football is all the richer for having friendly rivalries that are often within the same household, street, office or in this case, TV studio.

And while Savage might have had the last laugh for Wales on this occasion, we'll have to wait and see what Euro 2020 has in store to know which friendly Home Nations rival will go the furthest this summer.