The clubs with the best performances on Instagram in 2023

With a wide advantage over other clubs, the Spanish duo have over 2 billion interactions each. Al Nassr and Flamengo are the only clubs outside Europe in the top 10

Real Madrid is the club with the most interactions on Instagram in 2023: 2.59 billion. Second in the platform’s audience ranking, comes the Merengues’ main rival: FC Barcelona – with 2.215 billion.

In addition to the Spanish giants, only three other clubs surpassed the one billion interactions mark in 2023: Galatasaray (TUR), Manchester United (ING) – who faced each other in the group stage of the 2023/24 UEFA Champions League – and Manchester City, new FIFA Club World Cup champions.

The Spanish duo’s achievement is so significant that the Turkish club’s interactions, combined with those of the two Manchester rivals, reach the mark of 3.76 billion – around a billion interactions less than those of Real Madrid and Barcelona combined.

Next in the top 10 of the most successful clubs on Instagram in 2023 come the only two representatives outside of Europe: in 6th place, Al Nassr, a club that has the “organic boost” of Cristiano Ronaldo; and Flamengo, the club with most fans in Brazil – and which, despite not having won any trophies this year, has had a significant performance, consolidating itself as one of the biggest sports brands in the world.

With more than 778 million interactions, Flamengo’s performance is so significant that it is ahead of the ambitious Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) and Liverpool, its opponent in the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup. The top 10 is closed by Fenerbahçe , Galatasaray’s main rival.

Real Madrid would be the 11th club with the most followers if only the new followers gained during the year were counted

It was not only in interactions that Real Madrid led on Instagram in 2023. The club from the Spanish capital was also the one that accumulated the most new followers over the past year.

With 20.6 million new followers, Real Madrid closed the year with a 16% growth in this regard. This number alone would be enough to place the Merengues as the 11th in the followers ranking – ahead of local rivals Atlético de Madrid, which has 16.5 million total followers.

Among the clubs with the highest number of new followers, some new faces compared to previous years.

In 2nd and 3rd place, two clubs with more recent prominence in the world of football: Al Nassr – the team of Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mané, Anderson Talisca, among other football stars – and Inter Miami CF, a club managed by David Beckham and which features Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and Luís Suarez, Grêmio’s standout in the 2023 Brazilian Championship.

Inter Miami, by the way, was the club that grew the most proportionally compared to December 31, 2022: 1.4k% increase. The arrival of the stars – all of them former Barcelona players – took the North American club’s social media by storm.

Libertadores Champion is the club with the highest engagement in the world in 2023

Not everyone knows what the engagement rate is. To put it simply, engagement rate is the % of users who already follow a certain page and interact with posts.

Fluminense Football Club was the world’s engagement leader this season, with 37.5% rate. The club’s year was full of great achievements – including the surprising signing of Marcelo, a Real Madrid idol who began his football journey at Tricolor.

During the year, the club also thrashed archrivals Flamengo 4-1 in the final of the Rio de Janeiro Championship, in addition to winning the long-awaited Copa Libertadores da América.

In the top 10 engagement there are also other Brazilian clubs: in 3rd, Botafogo, with the unbelievable feat of losing a championship after leading with a 14-point advantage over the closest opponent; in 4th, Vasco; in 6th, Fortaleza, runner-up of Copa Sulamericana; and then, the trio from the city of São Paulo: São Paulo in 7th, Corinthians in 8th and Palmeiras in 9th.

It is clear then that the consumption of digital content is not restricted to just following, but also leaving a like and commenting on your club’s posts – and also posting a joke on rivals’ pages.

Samba Digital will continue to monitor social networks daily.

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