As the big event officially kicked off yesterday, “World Cup 2022” has achieved over 460K Instagram hashtags and 5.7 billion TikTok views so far. It’s evident that football fanatics are pouring their excitement on social media to celebrate the world’s biggest sporting party.
But which World Cup teams and players have the most supportive fans online?
Inspired, Ticketgum.com conducted a sentiment analysis on over 10,000 tweets over an 8-day period in the lead-up to the World Cup and uncovered this year’s most loved teams and players.
The World Cup players with the most supportive fans
| Rank | Player | Team | Number of positive tweets | % of positive tweets | Online support score /10 |
| 1 | Nathan Aké | Netherlands | 91 | 92.86% | 9.20 |
| 2 | Kylian Mbappé | France | 37 | 94.87% | 8.75 |
| 3 | Lionel Messi | Argentina | 201 | 86.64% | 8.50 |
| 4 | Neymar | Brazil | 208 | 84.55% | 8.45 |
| 5 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 188 | 83.93% | 8.15 |
| 6 | Garang Kuol | Australia | 31 | 88.57% | 8.00 |
| 7= | Iliman Ndiaye | Senegal | 24 | 92.31% | 7.95 |
| 7= | Mario Götze | Germany | 24 | 92.31% | 7.95 |
| 9= | Sardar Azmoun | Iran | 20 | 95.24% | 7.80 |
| 9= | Luka Modrić | Croatia | 25 | 89.29% | 7.80 |
Luka Modrić among top ten most loved World Cup players on social media
Receiving an impressive 89.29% of positive tweets, Croatian midfielder, Luka Modrić, ranks joint ninth scoring an online support score of 7.80/10.
Dutch defender crowned fan favourite player ahead of World Cup
Beating a slew of famous names, Dutch defender, Nathan Aké is the most loved on Twitter (9.20/10) with a staggering 92.86% of supportive tweets. French top scorer, Kylian Mbappé takes close second with his number of positive tweets (37)being 59% fewer than Nathan in first.
Close friends Messi (8.50/10) and Neymar (8.45/10) place third and fourth respectively with a slim difference in their final scores. Despite controversies, Ronaldo sits in fifth place (8.15/10) with the striker’s dedicated fanbase bagging him 188 positive tweets.
The World Cup teams with the most supportive fans
| Rank | Team | Number of positive tweets | % of positive tweets | Online support score /10 |
| 1 | Argentina | 1,458 | 85.82% | 9.09 |
| 2 | France | 681 | 84.91% | 7.88 |
| 3 | Portugal | 686 | 83.35% | 7.73 |
| 4 | Brazil | 1,418 | 82.25% | 7.58 |
| 5 | Netherlands | 404 | 85.23% | 6.97 |
| 6= | Germany | 654 | 81.95% | 6.67 |
| 6= | Spain | 442 | 83.24% | 6.67 |
| 6= | Cameroon | 229 | 87.07% | 6.67 |
| 9 | Japan | 198 | 87.22% | 6.37 |
| 10= | Qatar | 8,221 | 76.47% | 6.22 |
| 10= | Belgium | 320 | 84.21% | 6.22 |
The Argentina national team is the most loved on Twitter, earning an online support score of 9.09/10. Not only have over 5,000 devoted fans flocked to Qatar ahead of the team’s opening match, its huge fanbase has also contributed to a whopping 85.82% of positive tweets and 1,458 supportive tweets.
Following in second is the France national team achieving an online support score of 7.88/10. The reigning champions have gained an impressive 84.91% of positive tweets online -681 since 7th November.
Pipping Brazil by a mere 0.15, Portugal’s squad (7.73/10) headed by social media superstar, Ronaldo, claims third place, securing 83.35% of positive tweets. The five-time World Cup winner, Brazil, comes fourth racking up an online support score of 7.58/10.
Rounding off the top five is the Netherlands national team, scoring a respectable 6.97/10. Receiving 85.23% of positive tweets, fans remain hopeful that the three-time runners-up claim their first title in Qatar this year.
