The number of internet searches for the word “bisht” rocketed after Argentina football star Lionel Messi wore one of the garments as he lifted the Fifa World Cup trophy in Qatar on Sunday.
Billions of people watched the Argentina-France final, and the US alone clocked 26 million viewers for the match. As a result, many international fans will have seen the bisht for the first time.
Online searches for bishts and what they are surged along with interest in the black robe draped over the shoulders of arguably one of the greatest footballers of all time.
Google trends showed searches for bisht, a traditional gown worn by men for weddings, graduations and official events, were relatively few before the final, and on December 19 reached peak popularity twice as football fans went online to find out more.
The country responsible for the most searches was Qatar, where the tournament was hosted. After that, came Haiti, Ghana, Bahrain and the UAE, respectively, followed by Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sweden, Kuwait and Argentina.
As Messi made his way to collect the trophy, he was greeted by Fifa president Gianni Infantino and Sheikh Tamim, Emir of Qatar. Wearing his gold medal, Messi stood proudly as a bisht, a ceremonial robe, was wrapped around him.
The image broadcast around the world prompted strong reaction at both ends of the scale, from those who understood the mark of respect that it embodied and from those confused as to why Argentina's national team jersey was being covered.
The robe Messi wore was a $2,200 bisht. The gold thread came from Germany and the Najafi cotton fabric was imported from Japan.
After the broadcast, sales of bishts have reportedly increased dramatically.
All time World Cup goal scorers: in pictures
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ALL-TIME TOP WORLD CUP GOALSCORERS: =35) Oldrich Nejedly (Czechoslovakia) seven goals in six games. Getty -
=35) Careca (Brazil) seven goals in nine games. -
=35) Andrzej Szarmach (Poland, on floor) seven goals in 13 games. Getty -
=35) Luis Suarez (Uruguay) seven goals in 16 games. AFP -
=35) Johnny Rep (Netherlands) seven goals in 14 games. AFP -
=35) Hans Schaefer (Germany) seven goals in 15 games. Getty -
=26) Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) eight goals in 22 games. AP -
=26) Oscar Miguez (Uruguay) eight goals in seven games. Getty =26) Leonidas (Brazil) eight goals in five games. =26) Guillermo Stabile (Argentina) eight goals in four games. -
=26) Rudi Voeller (Germany) eight goals in 15 games. AFP -
=26) Rivaldo (Brazil) eight goals in 14 games. Getty -
=26) Neymar (Brazil) eight goals in 13 games. Reuters -
=26) Harry Kane (England) eight goals in 11 games. Getty -
=26) Diego Maradona (Argentina) eight goals in 21 games. AFP -
=16) Uwe Seeler (Germany) nine goals in 21 games. AFP -
=16) Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (Germany) nine goals in 19 games. AFP -
=16) Jairzinho (Brazil) Nine goals in 16 games. AFP -
=16) Paolo Rossi (Italy) nine goals in 14 games. Action Images -
=16) Roberto Baggio (Italy) nine goals in 16 games. Getty -
=16) David Villa (Spain) nine goals in 12 games. Getty -
=16) Vava (Brazil) nine goals in 10 games. AFP -
=16) Christian Vieri (Italy) nine goals in nine games. AFP -
=16) Eusebio (Portugal) nine goals in six games. -
=16) Ademir (Brazil) nine goals in six games. AFP -
=10) Grzegorz Lato (Poland) 10 goals in 20 games. Getty -
=10) Thomas Muller (Germany) 10 goals in 19 games. Getty -
=10) Teofilo Cubillas (Peru) 10 goals in 13 games. AFP -
=10) Gary Lineker (England) 10 goals in 12 games. -
=10) Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina) 10 goals in 12 games. Getty -
=10) Helmut Rahn (Germany) 10 goals in 10 games. AP -
=8) Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany) 11 goals in 17 games. Getty -
=8) Sandor Kocsis (Hungary) 11 goals in five games. Getty -
=6) Pele (Brazil) 12 goals in 14 games. Action Images -
=6) Kylian Mbappe (France) 12 goals in 14 games. AP -
=4) Just Fontaine (France) 13 goals in six games. AFP -
=4) Lionel Messi (Argentina) 13 goals in 26 games. Getty -
3) Gerd Muller (Germany) 14 goals in 13 games. AP -
2) Ronaldo (Brazil) 15 goals in 19 games. AP -
1) Miroslav Klose (Germany) 16 goals in 24 games. Getty
