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Most followers on Instagram

Most followers on Instagram
Who
Cristiano Ronaldo
What
621,979,902 follower(s)
Where
Not Applicable
When
19 February 2024

The most followed user on Instagram is Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo. As of 19 February 2024, Ronaldo had 621,979,902 followers.

The second most followed Instagram user is Argentine footballer Lionel Messi (499,703,950 followers).

The most followed woman on Instagram is American actress and singer Selena Gomez. As of 19 February 2024, Gomez had 429,895,005 followers on the platform.

Early life and Career Beginnings

The sportsman - full name Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro - was born in Funchal, Madeira, Portugal on 5 February 1985.

He had humble beginnings, growing up in the parish of Santo António as the fourth and youngest child of cook and cleaner Maria Dolores dos Santos Viveiros da Aveiro and José Dinis Aveiro, who worked as a gardener and part-time kit man for football club Andorinha.

His father’s role at the Portuguese club perhaps paved the way towards Ronaldo’s passion.

It was at this club that he first started playing football at a young age, and it wasn’t long before his exceptional talent was noticed.

After a brief stint at Portugal side Sporting CP, Ronaldo signed for Manchester United for a record £12 million in 2003 at age 18. No teenager in England had been signed for that much before him.

He’s since played for teams around the world, including Real Madrid, Juventus, and Al Nassr as well as his home country Portugal.

He’s not the only famous sibling in his family – his sister Liliana Cátia, AKA Kátia Aveiro, is a pop star.

She first released music in 2005 under the name Ronalda, a reference to her famous brother.

Rise to Instagram Fame 

Ronaldo joined Instagram in October 2012, a couple of years after the social media platform was launched.

In that time, he’s shared more than 3,700 posts with his fans – detailing his life both on and off the pitch.

And every single one of his posts attracts millions of likes and comments.

The oldest post on his account is from 31 October 2012 and shows him on the pitch for Real Madrid.

It didn’t have a caption and gathered 1.2 million likes.

His posts now tend to attract around 15 million likes, showing just how much his star power has grown since he joined Instagram.

He’s always shared a mixture of images from his professional and personal life, as well as talking about his work with charities such as Save The Children.

These days, his own five children regularly feature in his posts.

His account is as much about business as it is pleasure.

He regularly posts about the likes of NFTs, his latest fragrances, and video games he’s featured in.

Strategies for Gaining Followers 

10 years after joining, Ronaldo became the first person with 500 million followers on Instagram, reaching the milestone in November 2022.

He was also named the most liked person on Facebook and has the most followers on Twitter (X) for an athlete.

Cristiano Ronaldo accepting a GWR certificate

His fans clearly like the balance he’s struck between posting about his football career, his family life, his business ventures and his charitable work.

The footballer also posts a mixture of still images and Instagram Reels.

He adds an extra personal touch by regularly sharing what appear to be impromptu and unfiltered snaps on his Instagram Stories.

Impact and Influence 

Since he’s the most followed person on Instagram, it’s more than fair to say Ronaldo has had a significant impact on the social media platform.

At the time of writing, there’s a reported 2 billion users on Instagram, which means 1 in 3 people on the platform is following him.

Ronaldo is thought of as one of the world’s most famous and marketable athletes.

He’s carved himself into a brand by working not only as a footballer but also a model, an entrepreneur and a philanthropist.

The star has donated an incalculable amount of money to charity and other organizations throughout his career.

In 2009, he famously gave £100,000 to the hospital in Madeira that has saved his mother’s life as she battled cancer. The money was used to build a cancer centre on the island.

In 2013, he became a Global Artist Ambassador for Save the Children, and was named an ambassador for The Mangrove Care Forum in Indonesia, which raises awareness of mangrove conservation.

Top 5 Posts of All Time 

A post on Brandwatch, dated 4 March 2024, details the 20 most liked posts ever posted to Instagram, and Ronaldo is heavily featured in the list.

Here are the footballer’s most popular posts ever, according to the site.

  1. A 2022 paid partnership with Louis Vuitton gained 42.3 million likes. It’s an image of him and fellow footballer Lionel Messi playing chess, taken by famous photographer Annie Leibovitz.

He captioned it: “Victory is a State of Mind. A long tradition of crafting trunks photographed by @annieleibovitz for @louisvuitton”

  1. A joint post between Ronaldo and Al Nassr in 2022, which announced him signing for the team, was liked 34.1 million times.

The club wrote: “This is more than history in the making. This is a signing that will not only inspire our club to achieve even greater success but inspire our league, our nation and future generations, boys and girls to be the best version of themselves. Welcome @cristiano to your new home @alnassr_fc”

  1. Also from 2022, a snap of Ronaldo on the pitch in his Portugal strip, which he posted to reflect on representing his country in the World Cup, was liked 33.8 million times.

He wrote alongside the image: “Winning a World Cup for Portugal was the biggest and most ambitious dream of my career. Fortunately I won many titles of an international dimension, including for Portugal, but to put the name of our country on the highest spot in the world was my biggest dream.

“I fought for this. I fought hard for this dream. In the 5 appearances I scored in the World Cup over 16 years, always next to great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I gave it all. Left it all on the field. I never turned my face to the fight and I never gave up on this dream.”

  1. A joint post in 2021 from Ronaldo and his long-term girlfriend, model and influencer Georgina Rodríguez, announced they were expecting twins. It secured 32.1 million likes.

He wrote: “Delighted to announce we are expecting twins. Our hearts are full of love - we can’t wait to meet you #blessed”

Tragically, one of the twins died during childbirth.

  1. In 2022, Ronaldo paid tribute to legendary footballer Pelé after his death at the age of 82.

Alongside a picture of them together, Cristiano wrote: “My deep condolences to all of Brazil, and especially to the family of Mr. Edson Arantes do Nascimento. A mere "goodbye" to the eternal King Pelé will never be enough to express the pain that currently embraces the entire football world. An inspiration to so many millions, a reference from yesterday, today and forever. The affection you always showed for me was reciprocated in all the moments we shared, even at a distance. He will never be forgotten and his memory will live on forever in each and every one of us football lovers. Rest In Peace King Pele”

The post earned 32 million likes.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Other World Records

Ronaldo is a rather prolific record breaker and has dozens of them to his name.

Here’s a selection of some of his most impressive Guinness World Records titles: