At the crease or on the 'gram, Virat Kohli is no stranger to making history. The cricket superstar has become the first Indian to pass 250 million followers on Instagram, further cementing his status as one of the most popular athletes on the planet.
Kohli, who holds a host of records including most runs in T20 internationals, is by far the most influential cricketer on social media. The former India captain has almost six times more followers than the second-most followed player on the platform, MS Dhoni with a comparatively paltry 42.5 million.
Given the size of the population and its obsession with cricket, it should come as no surprise that the 10 most followed cricketers in the world are all from India. Sachin Tendulkar, arguably the greatest batsman of all time, is narrowly behind Dhoni with 40.5 million, followed by current India captain Rohit Sharma (28.5 million).
The rest of the top 10 are: Hardik Pandya (25.9 million), Suresh Raina (23.8 million), AB de Villiers (21.9 million), Yuvraj Singh (17.5 million), KL Rahul (14.2 million), and Shikhar Dhawan (13.6 million).
But how does Kohli fare in the global rankings of most followed athletes?
Football dominates
Kohli is the third-most followed athlete on Instagram, his 250 million followers only surpassed by the whopping 464 million who follow Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, and Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo, who is not only the most followed athlete but the most followed person on the platform with 585 million.
As the world's most popular sport, it's to be expected that football players dominate the rankings. Of the top 10 most followed accounts, eight of them are footballers, not including retired players.
Former Brazil and Barcelona star Ronaldinho and ex-England captan David Beckham are the eighth and seventh most popular athlete profiles on Instagram despite hanging up their boots several years ago.
Check out the photo gallery above to view the 10 most followed athletes on Instagram. We've only included athletes still active, so Ronaldinho and Beckham have been excluded. The figures are correct as of May 26, 2023. To move on to the next photo, click on the arrows or swipe if using a mobile device.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
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MATCH INFO
What: 2006 World Cup quarter-final
When: July 1
Where: Gelsenkirchen Stadium, Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Result:
England 0 Portugal 0
(Portugal win 3-1 on penalties)
'Gold'
Director:Anthony Hayes
Stars:Zaf Efron, Anthony Hayes
Rating:3/5
Company Profile:
Name: The Protein Bakeshop
Date of start: 2013
Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani
Based: Dubai
Size, number of employees: 12
Funding/investors: $400,000 (2018)
Company profile
Name: Oulo.com
Founder: Kamal Nazha
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2020
Number of employees: 5
Sector: Technology
Funding: $450,000
EGYPT SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ahmed El Shennawy, Mohamed El Shennawy, Mohamed Abou-Gabal, Mahmoud Abdel Rehem "Genesh"
Defenders: Ahmed Elmohamady, Ahmed Hegazi, Omar Gaber, Ali Gazal, Ayman Ahsraf, Mahmoud Hamdy, Baher Elmohamady, Ahmed Ayman Mansour, Mahmoud Alaa, Ahmed Abou-Elfotouh
Midfielders: Walid Soliman, Abdallah El Said, Mohamed Elneny, Tarek Hamed, Mahmoud “Trezeguet” Hassan, Amr Warda, Nabil Emad
Forwards: Ahmed Ali, Mohamed Salah, Marwan Mohsen, Ahmed "Kouka" Hassan.
The UAE squad for the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
The jiu-jitsu men’s team: Faisal Al Ketbi, Zayed Al Kaabi, Yahia Al Hammadi, Taleb Al Kirbi, Obaid Al Nuaimi, Omar Al Fadhli, Zayed Al Mansoori, Saeed Al Mazroui, Ibrahim Al Hosani, Mohammed Al Qubaisi, Salem Al Suwaidi, Khalfan Belhol, Saood Al Hammadi.
Women’s team: Mouza Al Shamsi, Wadeema Al Yafei, Reem Al Hashmi, Mahra Al Hanaei, Bashayer Al Matrooshi, Hessa Thani, Salwa Al Ali.
Our legal advisor
Rasmi Ragy is a senior counsel at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Prosecutor in Egypt with more than 40 years experience across the GCC.
Education: Ain Shams University, Egypt, in 1978.
