Kylian Mbappé: The New Instagram King of Spain
On Monday, Real Madrid announced the signing of star striker Kylian Mbappé from Paris Saint-Germain. While fans will have to wait to see his performance on the pitch, the digital marriage of these two football giants is already making waves.
On the day of the official announcement, Mbappé’s personal Instagram saw a surge of 2,9 million new followers. His post, a heartfelt message about realizing a dream, garnered around 16,5 million interactions, making it a standout moment on social media.
With this massive growth, Mbappé now boasts 116,4 million followers on Instagram, taking the top spot as the most significant digital brand among La Liga players for the 2024/2025 season. For comparison, Sergio Ramos, the previous season’s leader, has just over 63 million followers, and Vinícius Júnior, another Real Madrid star and Ballon d’Or favorite, has 477 million followers—almost a third of Mbappé’s count.
The Golden Trio: Mbappé, Vini Jr., and Bellingham
Next season, Real Madrid will feature a powerhouse trio: Kylian Mbappé, Brazilian sensation Vini Jr., and English star Jude Bellingham. Their combined social media performances are impressive. In early June, while Vini and Bellingham celebrated their Champions League victory with 15,4 million and 13,7 million interactions, respectively, Mbappé’s personal post about his dream achieved 16,5 million interactions.
Vini Jr. holds the record for the most interactions on a single post among Real Madrid players, with 7 million interactions on one of his posts.
Top Footballers on Social Media
The new generation of football stars is taking over social media. Cristiano Ronaldo, with 631 million followers, is still a media phenomenon but can’t match the engagement rates of the younger stars. In the first three days of June, Ronaldo reached 12,1 million interactions and gained 303,000 new followers.
In comparison, Mbappé gained 2 million new followers, while Vini Jr. and Bellingham gained 728,000 and 542,000, respectively.
The New Digital Football Stars
Reaching Real Madrid might be the pinnacle of a player’s brand in 2024. Among the top seven players by follower growth this year, five are from Real Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the club’s all-time greats, leads with 14,6 million new followers. The digital performance of these players is unparalleled.
Global Digital Habits
According to GWI Insights, it’s a global trend to follow players, teams, and official competition profiles on social media. Brazil stands out with 45,4% above the global average, but Asian countries like Indonesia (56,2%), the Philippines (54,9%), and India (47,2%) also show significant engagement.
Compared to other countries, Brazil is a major player in the football world, and its fans show a higher tendency to follow their idols on social media than those from the top European leagues.
For instance, 24,7% of English fans, 26,9% of Spanish fans, 27,2% of Italian fans, 18% of German fans, and 18,2% of French fans extend their sports content consumption to social media.
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