According to a new November 2025 report on athletes that get the most online attention, soccer player Vinicius Junior leads the list, with 1.5 million Instagram followers gained in the last month.

A study by Heepsy took a close look at the most popular sportsmen, their online popularity, and their wealth.

The study focused on media attention, as well as social media popularity (TikTok, Instagram, Facebook).

It also added their total earnings and Forbes ranking to provide additional context.

• Vinicius Junior

Instagram followers gained (last month): 1.5 million

Instagram hashtags: 1.4 million

TikTok followers: 28.3 million

Total earnings: 55 million

This Brazilian soccer player earns 1st place on the list, with the second-highest Instagram followers gain, at 1.5M new fans in just one month. There are also 1.4 million hashtags about him on the same platform, while the media mentioned him over 314K, adding to his overall popularity.

• Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo takes 2nd place by leading the Forbes list of the richest athletes and gaining 1.8M Instagram followers over the last 30 days. He is not as popular among the Gen Z audience on TikTok, but still has over 4.6M followers there.

• Kylian Mbappé

French soccer player Kylian Mbappé is third, with 853K Instagram hashtags and over 127M followers on his account. He also ranks 16th for athlete net worth, with $90M in total earnings from his career.

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• Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen is the first auto racing sportsman on the list. His fans created over 2.3 million posts about him on Instagram, and he is the favorite of the journalists in the top 10, getting 1.1 million mentions in the media.

• Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton follows closely, completing the top 5 athletes who get the most attention online. He ranks above Verstappen in the Forbes list, with $80M in earnings. When it comes to social media, he gained 902K new followers on Instagram during the last month, adding to this impressive total audience of 41.4 million.

• Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi comes sixth, coming second in the Forbes list with $135 million it total earnings.

Messi has 507,261,216 followers on IG and gained 609,593 in the last 30 days.

His total online reach was 624,159,583, and his hype score is 47.

Also Read: No Messi, No Ronaldo: Footballers Who Scored Stunning Goals Directly From Corner Kicks

• Other Legends

US basketball player LeBron James follows closely with a hype rate of 46.

Stephen Curry and Erling Haaland are next with a hype rate of 45.

Neymar closes the top list with a hype rate of 44.

Tabi Vicuña, Founder at Heepsy, commented on the findings:

“Sport stars have to participate in the online world now. Their career and talents contribute to their popularity, but it also comes from their personality and charisma. Their lives are discussed as much as the lives of actors and singers, if not more. Some try to distance themselves from the popularity, and this is a valid choice in a world oversaturated by media, but others turn it into new brand deals and major opportunities for their careers.”

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Heepsy ranks Vinicius Junior as the most popular athlete globally. PHOTO/ Heepsy.