The Internet’s Top Soccer Players, Ranked by PeekScore
The final tally revealed that the Internet belongs not exclusively to the U.S. or our interests and celebrities, but to the world. The sport whose athletes appeared on that list more than any other — four out of 15, in total? Football. Or soccer, as we call it.
While the short-lived NASL (North American Soccer League) did sell out stadiums for a time in the late-70s — at least for so long as international superstar Pelé, the man widely acknowledged as one of the greatest to ever play the game, was in the league — soccer has never really been able to gain any lasting popularity here in the states. The rest of the world is unconcerned with what we yanks find worthy of attention, and as such some of the most present and influential individuals in all of cyberspace — biggest at social media, biggest in search engine hits, etc. — are indeed soccer players. They are, needless to say, a natural for a list of this nature.
We’re not measuring their skills as athletes, nor even their fame out in the world at large. This is strictly about the extent to which these guys are a big deal here in cyberspace. Each of the men listed below has millions of followers and/or friends at social media, and is a legitimate pop culture sensation throughout many parts of the world. Accordingly, the footprints are deep throughout.
Please note: We’re keeping the list to active players, which is why the now retired David Beckham is not on the list. It should be noted, however, that his PeekScore is 10; which would find him tied for first place (and finds him comfortably on the above-mentioned list of the Web’s biggest jocks).
| Rank | Picture | Name | Bio | PeekScore |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
Cristiano Ronaldo | Plays for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and is captain of the Portuguese national team | 10.00 / 10.00 |
| 2 |  |
Lionel Messi | Plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona and is the current captain of the Argentina national team | 10.00 / 10.00 |
| 3 |  |
Ricardo Kakà | Plays for Major League Soccer’s Orlando City club and the Brazilian national team | 10.00 / 10.00 |
| 4 |  |
Neymar | Brazilian footballer who plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona | 9.30 / 10.00 |
| 5 |  |
Didier Drogba | Plays for Premier League club Chelsea, and is the captain of the Côte d’Ivoire national football team. | 9.30 / 10.00 |
| 5 |  |
James Rodriguez | Plays for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and the Colombian national team. | 9.26 / 10.00 |
| 6 |  |
Wayne Rooney | Plays for Manchester United, and the England national team. | 9.17 / 10.00 |
| 7 |  |
Andres Iniesta | Plays for FC Barcelona and the Spanish national team | 9.15 / 10.00 |
| 8 |  |
Fernando Torres | Plays for La Liga’s Atlético Madrid, on loan from Italian club Milan, and also plays for the Spanish National team | 9.14 / 10.00 |
| 9 |  |
Steven Gerrard | Plays for and captains Premier League club Liverpool and the England national team | 9.03 / 10.00 |
| 10 |  |
Luis Suárez | Plays for La Liga club FC Barcelona and the Uruguayan national team. | 9.03 / 10.00 |
| 11 |  |
Ronaldinho | Plays for the Mexican club Querétaro. | 8.87 / 10.00 |
| 12 |  |
Mesut Özil | Plays for English Premier League club Arsenal, and the Germany national team | 8.67 / 10.00 |
| 13 |  |
Gerard Piqué | Plays for FC Barcelona | 8.61 / 10.00 |
| 14 |  |
David Villa Sánchez | Plays for Major League Soccer club New York City and the Spanish national team | 8.39 / 10.00 |