Thought this made interesting viewing. I imagine some variation of this data is presented to prospective signings, as we’ve had consistent representation near the top, especially when you consider the time Ronaldo spent with us. Also shows the pull David Beckham had and still has tbh. Ronaldo is a complete marketing phenomenon though.
Most googled footballers 2004-2019...
- Thread starter Rozay
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Thought this made interesting viewing. I imagine some variation of this data is presented to prospective signings, as we’ve had consistent representation near the top, especially when you consider the time Ronaldo spent with us. Also shows the pull David Beckham had and still has tbh. Ronaldo is a complete marketing phenomenon though.
Fairplay to Maradona too
Beckham still that high? wow!
Everytime Rooney cropped up in that chart you just know he was in the papers for doing something daft. In no particular order; - fecking at least one granny. Getting sent off against Portugal. Getting lashed on England duty. Getting knocked out. fecking prostitutes. Paying £200 for a pack of fags. Handing a transfer request in. Obviously did really good things as well, but I usually just remember being in the limelight for all the wrong reasons. That's not to say that he's an inherently bad person, the tabloids had a right go at him. He seems like an normal bloke actually that was thrusted into limelight because he happened to be a generational talent.
Same goes for Gerard Pique, they're probably just googling who's the lucky b**tard nailing Shakira.
Few interesting things to note:
1. The only time Neymar gets to the top is when he was accused of rape.
2. Maradona is timeless, he is still always among the top 10 -15 most popular, even when he has retired 20 years ago.
3. Beckham is still very popular every now and then.
4. Despite winning Ballon D'or 4 times in a row during 09-12, Messi still couldn't overtake Ronaldo to the no.1 crown in tabloids
5. Ronaldinho was once the king in his time.
6. Ronaldo is the king of tabloids, like ever since he start kicking a ball
1. The only time Neymar gets to the top is when he was accused of rape.
2. Maradona is timeless, he is still always among the top 10 -15 most popular, even when he has retired 20 years ago.
3. Beckham is still very popular every now and then.
4. Despite winning Ballon D'or 4 times in a row during 09-12, Messi still couldn't overtake Ronaldo to the no.1 crown in tabloids
5. Ronaldinho was once the king in his time.
6. Ronaldo is the king of tabloids, like ever since he start kicking a ball
This is google data though, not tabloids per se.
I think another possible observation is the general interest in Real Madrid and Barcelona globally. We are popular, but rarely at the very top. I was surprised that Paul Pogba wasn’t higher in the year we signed him, for example. Not only did he sign for a super club for a World Record Dee, but he also got to the final of Euro 2016. That may suggest that the United interest is not quite at the VERY top. Pogba is a marketable player, there was a huge campaign around his arrival involving adidas and Stormzy, plus the whole ‘returning to his former club’ angle - yet he never really threatened the top spots that year. He was in the top 5 or 10 of course, but still a way behind the lead.
Rooney, aside from Becks (who we have to share with other clubs anyway) was our most consistent in this period, and nobody else really got a look in for most of that time. You can see the appeal of the Latin market though when we signed Hernández. He went from a nobody to one of the most popular few footballers in the world overnight.
Everyone wants to know about Cristiano.
Nope, Neymar was also on top when leaving Barcelona. Not a big surprise as this transfer was a real sensation.
Regarding Messi and Ronaldo, I think, I’m addition to Ronaldo being more conventionally good looking than Messi - his (Ronaldo’s) decision to learn English has probably been massively important in separating the marketability of both players.
Run it again without Cristiano’s own searches.
Stats started in 2004.
Why CR's is high?
1. Joined Manchester United as Beckham's replacement (the new No. 7). Quick fame.
2. 2006 World Cup wink incident.
3. United comeback to Dominant Glory starting season 2006-7 onward.
4. Becoming World's best player around 2007 to 2009. Top most searched at this time.
5. Momentum carried on after joining Real. Interestingly this has effects on Messi's google searched name. The Messi vs Ronaldo goat debate ongoing until now.
Why CR's is high?
1. Joined Manchester United as Beckham's replacement (the new No. 7). Quick fame.
2. 2006 World Cup wink incident.
3. United comeback to Dominant Glory starting season 2006-7 onward.
4. Becoming World's best player around 2007 to 2009. Top most searched at this time.
5. Momentum carried on after joining Real. Interestingly this has effects on Messi's google searched name. The Messi vs Ronaldo goat debate ongoing until now.
What? Isn't that contradictory to your posts.
We "helped" gave boosts to many players in the ranking, not just players who joined us but also those who are linked with us. However only CR and Becks reaches the VERY top (CR when he's with us, and for Becks unfortunately stats started in 2004, so we may omit Beck, but seriously he's famous when he's with us, not because of Real). The others managed to reach top 5.
I say it stems from your assumption that Pogba "should" be among the very top. His name is just not strong enough. And still there is a clear quick rise in his rank circa 2016 when he's linked and joined us.
There’s nothing contradictory there. We are, clearly, a popular team - we have players in and around the top. But Real Madrid and Barcelona are at the VERY top, it seems.
I don’t think Pogba ‘should’ be anywhere. My point was that if even he, after breaking the world record, couldn’t reach the top, then it further underlined my point that we are not as popular as Real or Barca. You say his name just isn’t strong enough - this is football we are talking about and he had just broken the world record. And signed for one of the most popular clubs in the world. Just not THE most popular, I would say this particular data suggests. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, another hugely popular player, also joined us that summer - but neither of them could break the very top of that list. The likes of Rooney, Pogba, Hernandez have been our most popular players in recent years. They are steady in the top 10 while they are with us, but never really threaten the top. Neymar comes along and challenges the Ronaldo/Messi duopoly - but since Ronaldo left us, nobody has really reached those heights of popularity - at least based on this graphic.
My point is simply that United’s most popular player is still always a few off being the most popular in the game it seems. I would have thought we’d be higher, at least with a couple of players at certain times - like Rooney, Pogba, Zlatan, Kagawa, Hernandez. It seems whoever are Real and Barca’s most popular players tend to sit at the top of that list.
I think I could tell you when casillas had a heart attack based on that.
I must be reading it wrong, but I'm not sure in what way. How's Harry Kane on it at the start?
I think that is meant to be Michael Owen perhaps?
Can't believe it's not Rivaldo for that dive against Turkey.
Could be. Good shout.
I don't really understand any of this. Ronaldo at #3 in January '04? Highly, highly doubt it, he just wasn't a superstar at that point compared to Rooney, Henry, Zidane, Ronaldinho, Van Nistelrooy etc. The percentages/accumulated search value isn't making much sense to me either.
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Ronaldo was as big a superstar in January 04 as Rooney - maybe just not to English fans. He was already the most expensive teenager in world football, and clips of him doing his stepovers in a United shirt were everywhere. He had captured the imagination of young fans from his United debut in 2003. And he was also seen as a pin-up. Rooney was just some kid playing for Everton.
Van Nistelrooy was never the most marketable player. For a start, he has little or no individual brilliance and no fantasy to his game. Thankfully, kids were not the Opta-driven maniacs they are today back then. Kids cared more about beating two or three players than scoring pens and tap-ins. The others you mentioned were certainly superstars, but that period was the start of Ronaldo’s rise. After all, he stayed near the top since then.
I'll concede on Rooney, but I just don't buy the overall fame element at all. At that point Ronaldo had scored 1 goal for United.
Mind you, what I would say is that Google searches are not necessarily about fame, he was new so maybe people were searching for him for that? Intuitively you'd think people aren't necessarily going to Google for people or things they know all about already, although Beckham, Maradona, Pele and Ronaldo himself later in his career go against that so I don't know.
Then there's what you're famous for. There was that cartoon going round where Ronaldo would stand still, do some stepovers then jump on the floor. That could have been slightly later but that side of his game is what he was known for then rather than being a great player.
Still sceptical of the whole thing though when I can do this:
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2004-01-01 2004-01-31&q=Cristiano Ronaldo,Zinedine Zidane,Fernando Torres,Thierry Henry,Ronaldinho
Or this:
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2004-01-01 2004-01-31&q=Cristiano Ronaldo,Pele
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Ronaldo has one goal but nobody cares. He wasn’t exciting because of goals. He was exciting because he was skilful, and looked cool. He wore bright boots, had blonde streaks in his hair, did stepovers and wore United’s #7 shirt. As someone who was about 17 when he joined, I can say for certain that he was our most talked about player. There were Ronaldo compilations being made every day. Again, nobody cares about goals, we just wanted to watch tricks and back heels.
The stats you posted are interesting, but they already show his rise - he’s third on the first one already ahead of Zidane and Torres, and it’s only January. His profile continues to build that year, and Euro 2004 was big for him. Portugal went to the final. I think him being the most googled in 2004 isn’t that weird personally.
@Chipper apologies - I see you were referencing January more specifically, which does contradict that graphic, although I’m not entirely sure how the data is presented month by month on it.
I'd say he's last on the list of the names I put up. Average during the month is surely more important than one day peak if taking a snapshot of the month? If it is peak then Reyes should be above Ronaldo:
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2004-01-01 2004-01-31&q=Cristiano Ronaldo,Jose Antonio Reyes
If it's not taking a snapshot of the month but being more precise (the numbers are scrolling during the month so it may indicate that's what's happening) then he should only jump up the rankings on the 31st, right before the graphic switches to February's data.
I was also around when we signed Ronaldo. Not sure if you don't think I was but it kind of sounds like you don't, saying what we cared about etc. I'm a little older than you, 6-7 years by the sound of it and of course I don't like to think I was massively out of touch by then but then who does?
@Rozay no problem, and sorry myself. Started typing this before you added that little bit then got interrupted.