Paul Pogba has been revealed as the most mentioned footballer on Twitter in the UK for 2017, finishing just behind UFC champion Conor McGregor in the list of Twitter’s top 10 athletes.
Manchester United dominate the list, with British users of the social media site talking about Pogba, Romelu Lukaku and manager Jose Mourinho more than any other footballers. The top 10 is made up of entirely football people apart from Irish fighter McGregor in top spot and his boxing opponent from August, Floyd Mayweather, in fifth.
Neymar’s world-record transfer to PSG gets him on the list at No.7, just ahead of Real Madrid’s Goal 50 winner Cristiano Ronaldo, while there is no place for Barcelona forward Lionel Messi.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is a surprise inclusion at No.10, but was widely discussed on social media as the Gunners decided to end the lengthy #WengerIn/#WengerOut debate by giving the Frenchman a new contract.
As well as the most talked about athletes of 2017, Twitter also revealed the top 5 matches of the season, with Liverpool’s 4-0 thrashing of Arsenal taking top spot. The Gunners are represented in the top three most-talked-about games, with their 3-1 defeat to Manchester United and an epic 4-3 win over Leicester on the opening weekend of the season included.
The most retweeted sports status of the year was a touching tribute from England striker Jermain Defoe to Bradley Lowery following the six-year-old Sunderland fan’s passing in July. The second-most shared tweet was a charitable one from Andy Johnson which helped raise over £15,000 for mental-health awareness in support of Everton’s Aaron Lennon.
WHO ARE THE MOST MENTIONED ATHLETES ON TWITTER?
1) Conor McGregor
2) Paul Pogba
3) Romelu Lukaku
4) Jose Mourinho
5) Floyd Mayweather
6) Wayne Rooney
7) Neymar
8) Cristiano Ronaldo
9) Phillipe Coutinho
10) Arsene Wenger
WHICH WERE THE MOST DISCUSSED MATCHES OF 2017?
1) Liverpool 4-0 Arsenal
2) Arsenal 1-3 Man United
3) Arsenal 4-3 Leicester
4) Man United 4-0 West Ham
5) Tottenham 4-1 Liverpool
WHAT SPORTS UPDATES WERE THE MOST RETWEETED TWEETS OF 2017?
Like the top 10 most discussed athletes, the top 10 most retweeted sports tweets list is dominated by football and footballers. It includes hilarious entries from Peter Crouch and Wayne Rooney as well as Xabi Alonso’s retirement announcement and Gary Lineker’s outrage over the sacking of Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri.
