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Cristiano Ronaldo to ‘continue engaging’ with Chinese social media platforms, as Premier League and FC Barcelona also dominate

  • The Portuguese calls increased support on Weibo and Kuaishou ‘amazing’, as Barcelona take over Douyin and the Premier League explores Bilibili
  • ‘It’s going to be a blockbuster year for the industry,’ says Mailman Group chief Collins

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Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo is once again king of social media in China. Photo: AP
SCMP Sport

Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is still the king of Chinese social media, according to digital sports agency Mailman’s annual report.

The Red Card 2022: China Digital Performance Index, which ranks European football clubs, leagues and players amid China’s evolving online sports landscape, underlined the importance of digital engagement and monetisation as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to limit visits to the mainland for another year.

The big winners are “Most Popular Player Online” Ronaldo, “Most Popular Club Online” FC Barcelona, and “Most Popular League Online” Premier League. Another key takeaway is that engagement across leading clubs on popular social media platform Douyin dropped 10 per cent.
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Manchester United forward Ronaldo, who became the first person ever to reach 400 million followers on Instagram this month, continues his unmatched star power in China.

The 37-year-old is the most followed and engaged player on Weibo, boasting almost 7.5 million followers, while gaining nearly eight million followers in his first month of launching an account on Kuaishou. Ronaldo is an official ambassador for the video sharing mobile app, with his partnership igniting discussions over the power struggle between itself and Douyin.

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