The list consists of teams from the top five European leagues
The fastest-growing source of fan support in the modern world is social media. Football clubs have become more popular on social media in the last few years, with these platforms becoming the main source of advertising and promotions. Below are the Top 10 football clubs with the most social media followers across Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Tik Tok.
10. Arsenal (Premier League) – 93.7 million
The Gunners were on the verge of returning to the summit of the top flight when Manchester City shattered their dreams. This football club hails from Islington, in London, and it is the most successful in the FA Cup. As far as the FA Cup competition is concerned, Arsenal have won 14 titles. In addition, Arsenal has won 13 Premier League titles.
Kroenke Sports and Entertainment owns Arsenal Football and have a very loyal fan base in and around England. Their most successful manager, Arsene Wenger, departed from the club in 2018, and now his prodigy, Mikel Arteta, is the manager. They have close to 100 million followers across multiple platforms on social media.
9. Bayern Munich (Bundesliga) – 127 million
Bayern Munich have seen a lot of success since 2010, both in terms of trophies and global success. For instance, in 2020, they won the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup, as well as the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, and DFB Super Cup in previous years. They have been marching towards Bundesliga glory for 11 years straight after a nail-biting last-day thriller this year.
They’ve become popular on social media too after their recent run-through. The team is currently ranked eighth among popular football clubs worldwide, and they are likely to see a rise in their fan base on social media.
8. Manchester City (Premier League) – 131 million
With Pep Guardiola’s team achieving the impossible feat of winning a treble at the end of 2022–23, Manchester City have managed to rise in the ranks with a huge number of followers and pushed Bayern to the ninth spot. With Haaland, De Bruyne, and Gundogan being their star players this season, City have been able to achieve their dreamland as they have been runners-up of the UEFA Champions League 2020–21.
Since their takeover by Saudi-based owners, City have achieved huge success, going from a mid-table team to title challengers to champions in the league and Europe. This includes six Premier League titles and now a new, shining Champions League to show for it.
7. Liverpool (Premier League) – 131 million
Here is another English football giant on the list of the top 10 football clubs with the most social media followers. In the past, Liverpool have won many domestic and major trophies. This club has seen a rise and restoration of its glory days under the German coach, Jurgen Klopp.
In 2019, Liverpool won the UEFA Super Cup and the UEFA Champions League title. Their title hunt in the Premier League ended in 2020, but the celebrations were kept under wraps due to COVID-19. Following that, next year, the UEFA Champions League will be held for the sixth time, the UEFA Cup will be won three times, and the UEFA Super Cup will be won four times. Their fan base has grown strong over the years with the introduction of star players such as Salah, Mane, and Alisson.
6. Chelsea (Premier League) - 134 million
This team from London is one of those clubs that became successful after their takeover by the new owners. Since the arrival of Roman Abramovich, Chelsea have won a total of 19 trophies, including the Champions League twice, the Premier League twice, and the FA Cup five times.
In 2020–21, Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League. Also, the team won the UEFA Europa League, the UEFA Cup Winner’s Cup, and the UEFA Super Cup. This has not only made them one of the most successful teams in recent times but also one of the fan favourites in the football community. They have also been known to be the home of lucrative talents in football such as Eden Hazard, Kai Harvertz, Didier Drogba, and Peter Cech.
5. Juventus (Serie A) – 144 million
Popularly known as The Old Lady, the club holds the record for most consecutive Serie A titles in history, with their run coming to an end in 2020 with Inter Milan winning Serie A. In previous seasons, Juventus won the Italian Cup four times in a row. Juventus has won the Italian Cup 36 times in its history, a number that is double that of the second-most successful team.
With the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo in 2018, they have managed to grab the attention of many international fans. They have been struggling recently with their financial breach, and their dismay in the league and Europe also continues. All things said in recent times, Juventus fans have increased drastically in previous years.
4. PSG (Ligue 1) – 187 million
After the takeover by the Saudi-based owners, PSG, a French professional club, has been known to be home to many star players such as Ibrahimovich, Cavani, Neymar, Messi, and Mbappe. With the arrival of Neymar Jr. at PSG in 2017 after leaving Barcelona in a deal worth €222 million, PSG made the world known for their wealth muscle. In the same year, they also signed Kylian Mbappe, who at that time was just a teenager, ready for his next big move after becoming Ligue 1 champions with AS Monaco.
Although the main reason behind their social media popularity is Leo Messi, who joined in 2021 after leaving Barcelona in a shock move, Although this did not turn out to be the best of moves for both parties involved, Messi signed for Inter Miami recently, resulting in PSG losing followers across their platforms.
3. Manchester United (Premier League) – 206 million
The Red Devils are based in Old Trafford, England, and are one of the most popular football clubs in the world. Manchester United, however, won their first trophy in the last five years. This has dented their global presence a bit, but they still have their loyal fanbase present around the world on all seven continents.
They are one of the two most successful clubs in England, along with Liverpool, and with Sir Alex Ferguson spearheading the club into their glory years, United remains a fan favourite searching for their former glory. They have produced some world-class talent from their academy, most notably the Class of '93, which consisted of Beckham, the Neville brothers, Paul Scholes, and Ryan Giggs.
Manchester United also have one of the most recognised stadiums, Old Trafford. They have one of the most popular kits in the world; Manchester United's red kit is a football fan’s favourite. The team ranks third among the most-followed football teams on social media.
2. Barcelona (LaLiga) – 342 million
Here’s the first of two arch-Spanish rivals on the list: Barcelona is the second-most followed team in all of the sports on social media. The club has won many trophies, and its popularity continues to grow. There are big names that have been associated with Barcelona throughout its history, such as Johan Cruyff, Ronaldinho, Figo, Pep Guardiola, Xavi, and Iniesta.
One highlight has been the world’s best forward coming through the academy ranks of La Masia and going on to win all the possible trophies with the club and become the record Ballon d’Or winner in history. He was also part of a trio previously considered one of the most fluent, which consisted of Neymar, Suarez, and Messi. These three have led Barcelona to win the second-highest major trophies, such as the Champions League, Copa Del Rey, La Liga, Club World Cup, and UEFA Super Cup, after Real Madrid.
1. Real Madrid (LaLiga) – 362 million
If you look at the stats of league and European glory, one can believe that Real Madrid are the world’s most successful football club. In their history, Real Madrid have won 13 European titles and 35 league trophies.
Not only is the club’s remarkable success the reason for their massive fanbase, but La Galacticos have been home to the biggest names in football history, namely Di Stefano, Zidane, Ronaldo, Beckham, and Kaka. Among these players, Cristiano Ronaldo is the modern embodiment of the legend with Real Madrid, who, along with Benzema and Gareth Bale, won three back-to-back Champions Leagues, which was the first three-peat ever in the competition’s history.
All these things combined have amassed the highest number of social media followers in the world. Real Madrid won the FIFA Club of the 20th Century award with 42.35 per cent of the votes.
