While former Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo remains the football king of social media, surprisingly the top three coaches are all Italian – Carlo Ancelotti, Andrea Pirlo and Antonio Conte.
Social media analytics firm Talkwaker released its report for 2021, including a specific focus on the figures in this sport who have the most impact online.
Ronaldo has left Juve for Manchester United and remains comfortably the player with the most followers and interactions on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok.
He leads Paris Saint-Germain pair Lionel Messi and Neymar.
There are some surprises when it comes to the coaches who have the biggest online presence for 2021, as the top three are all Italian.
Real Madrid manager Ancelotti, formerly of Napoli and Everton, stands out on top with over 20 million interactions, including 12.8m on Instagram.
In second place is Pirlo, despite the face he was sacked by Juventus in July, having won the Coppa Italia and Italian Supercup.
Again, most of his followers and interactions are on Instagram.
Conte comes in third, having spent 2021 winning the Scudetto with Inter and then leaving for a new experience at Tottenham Hotspur.
He received 7.5m social media interactions, although he is far from a prolific user.
CR7 re dei social 2021. E che sorpresa tra gli allenatori: il podio è tutto italiano… https://t.co/EMgp48bpWl
— La Gazzetta dello Sport (@Gazzetta_it) December 28, 2021