In the world of Gen Z, a “hard launch” of relationships is like dropping the hottest mixtapes of the year or announcing the premiere of the new reality show—it's all about building anticipation, dropping hints, and finally revealing the big news with a splashy cover photo and a playlist of romantic captions.
It's not just about updating your status; it's about curating your love story for the digital stage, complete with Instagram stories, TikTok challenges, and tweets that make your followers swoon.
Who doesn't love a bit of digital PDA to spice up their feed? After all, why keep your romance under wraps when you can light up the timeline and make hearts flutter across the internet?
With that, check out how your favorite athletes go from training to changing relationship status in epic soft and hard launches.
1. Vanie and Charlie
Hell N Back by Bakar and Summer Walker has been the soft and hard launch anthem for this year. In the famous TikTok trend, social media users, including athletes, have been using it to reveal their SOs.
But Cignal’s Vanie Gandler, being a natural baddie, has a different take.
When her fans thought she had already found love, it was Charlie, her pogi cat, who was stealing the spotlight.
Meow-ments we can’t forget!
ALSO READ: Hard launch? Cignal’s Vanie Gandler reveals Charlie, the love of her life | OneSports.PH
2. Bella and hunk “bf”
NU’s Bella Belen had already revealed her perfect match. He’s tall, macho, and... walang ulo?
What kind of sorcery is this? Kidding!
Bella’s hunk, "boyfie,” is a mannequin. Similar to Vanie, she also posted it on her TikTok.
“Akala ko kung sino na 😭,” saida TikTokk user.
“Muntik na ako [ng] magselos,” added her fan.
And being part of the Delulu Nation, Bella rides the joke with One Sports.
“Kasi basketball player din ‘yun eh. Kita niyo naman po sa muscles,” she playfully said.
Paano na si Ran, Bella?
RELATED: Soft launch muna: NU ace Bella Belen shares a sneak peek of her hunk “bf” | OneSports.PH
NU star Bella Belen shares more from her hottie “jowa” prank | OneSports.PH
3. Fifi and Ran
Ran Takahashi has been the Philippines’ crowd favorite on Team Japan. With his outstanding volleyball performance and solid fan service, it is no longer a question.
Akari Chargers’ Fifi Sharma has grabbed her opportunity to have a photo taken with Ran as they watch the 2024 Volleyball Nations League Philippine leg men’s competition.
Fifi, being a fangirl, posted her picture with Ran and teasingly captioned it “hard launch.”.
Bella be like, “Akin lang ang asawa ko!”
The jealousy travels all the way to BINIverse as Bini Mikha commented on Fifi’s caption.
“I’m jealous,” she wrote.
Salamin, salamin, si Ran ay akin! Kidding!
ALSO READ: BINI Mikha jealous of Alas Pilipinas’ Fifi Sharma after her “hard launch” with Japan’s Ran Takahashi | OneSports.PH
4. Love triangle between Thea, Mingyu, and Sean
But if there’s a real winner in a hard launch contest, it would definitely be former DLSU’s Thea Gagate.
At first, Thea joined the jowa reveal trend with a standee of SEVENTEEN’s Mingyu.
It was just a fangirl joke at first.
But the former DLSU Lady Spikers’ tower broke the internet when she revealed the REAL love of her life, the UP Fighting Maroons’ big man, Sean Alter.
During their heartbreaking loss against the UST Golden Tigresses that ended their UAAP Season 86 stint, a tall man was captured by DLSU Sports hugging Thea.
Unfortunately, he was turning away from the camera.
But her soft launch era was over when Thea greeted Sean on his birthday.
“Happy Birthday,” Thea wrote.
“Thank you, ML,” Sean short-but-sweetly commented.
Akala ko joke joke lang tayo dito, Thea!
All kidding aside, we love to see them happy and in love. Daserb!
RELATED: Hard Launch? DLSU's Thea Gagate opens curtain on popular "beau" | OneSports.PH
'Bye, Mingyu': DLSU tower Thea Gagate hard launches her boyfriend and UP standout, Sean Alter | OneSports.PH
Whether it’s a grand reveal or a low-key vibe, true love shines more than any Instagram filter. It’s all about real connections, not just Instagram highlights!