ATP/WTA: Nadal also number 1 in social media

Rafael Nadal is not only in the official men’s world ranking, but also in the field of social media. Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams follow.

On the tennis court in 2017 it was almost perfect for Rafa, apart from the painful end of the season with knee problems. Six tournament victories, including two Grand Slam tournaments with Roland Garros and the US Open, plus a final in Melbourne – a strong record!

The fans of the “Bull of Manacor” also celebrated the season, and in the social media sector the Spaniard has more supporters than anyone else: Nadal gathers more than 33 million fans on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – records in the tennis scene. In second place, as in the “real” tennis life: Roger Federer with more than 29 million supporters.

Especially the case of Federer shows, however, that such lists are to be enjoyed with caution, because the popularity is also related to the entry into the social media world. For example, Federer did not join Twitter until April 2013, and Nadal had been at the start since July 2011, giving him two more years to collect followers.

The list is always interesting: Rank three is not followed by Serena Williams, possibly the best player of all time, but Maria Sharapova, who has also regularly outstripped the US-American in terms of advertising revenues in the years before her ban on doping. Sharapova’s advantage is particularly evident on Facebook, where the Russian has around ten million more fans. On Instagram, however, Williams is by far the number one.

With tenth place clearly ahead of the world rankings: Genie Bouchard. Shootings for the Sports Illustrated, resource-saving vacation shots and fan-dates greetings.

Who else is leading the social media? You can see here!