That Cristiano Ronaldo is the most marketable football player in the world should not come as a shock. With 26M followers on Twitter, and 82M on Facebook, the Portuguese, who won two Balon d’Ors and two Champions League titles, is known by almost 84% of the world’s population.
Following in second place is Lionel Messi. Barcelona’s talisman lost to Real Madrid’s star by a good amount, which is rather surprising considering the exposure and visibility they both have. The Argentine can count on a solid 57M likes on Facebook, but disappointingly has “only” 2M followers on Twitter.
The list created by market research experts "Repucom"
More surprising in this chart is definitely Gerard Pique occupying the third place. The Spanish centre-back has a global awareness rate of 58% and a combined 20M of followers on the social medias. Pique’s fame can be attributed, at least in part, to his marriage with pop superstar Shakira.
Ronaldo managed to beat Messi again this season, with his staggering marketability
The absolute most astonishing player in the list however remains Fernando Torres, remarkably in fourth place. Despite having the lowest combined number of followers on the famous social medias, el Nino is still known globally by over 59% of the people, according to Repucom. With 20 goals in 110 appearances, Torres’ global awareness is likely caused mostly by the international trophies that he won with Spain.
Torres' inclusion in fourth place is perhaps the most shocking of the chart
The list closes with renowned Wayne Rooney in fifth place, followed by Iniesta, Neymar, Casillas, Ibrahimovic and former French legend Thierry Henry.
Zlatan's position on the list of fame is certainly not what the Swedish star expected
