Billions of users around the world were locked out of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp for most of Monday afternoon after the social media platforms experienced a server outage.
The disruption, which lasted for nearly six hours, is estimated to have cost Facebook over $70m in revenue and left millions of football fans unable to check in with their favourite players and clubs.
Sport and social media have grown in tandem over the past ten years, with many football fans using the online platforms to get closer to some of the world’s greatest players while also being able to engage with like-minded fans online.
But with many fans being unable to stay in touch with their soccer heroes on Facebook, The Sun Online has given us a rundown of which players may have been hit hardest by Facebook’s outage.
Here is a list of the footballers with the largest number of followers on Facebook.
7. Kaka - 40.1m
Similar to his former Brazil teammate Ronaldinho, Kaka regularly updates his Instagram and Facebook feeds with old videos of the attacking midfielder showing why he was one of the world’s greatest.
6. Karim Benzema - 40.8m
Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema follows Ronaldinho and shows how much of a fan favourite he is worldwide.
Regularly posting photos of himself with fancy cars, the Galactico also shows how hard he trains, posting workout videos and high-intensity fitness sessions on his Facebook and Instagram accounts.
5. Ronaldinho - 52m
Another legend of the naughties, Ronaldinho, also boasts an impressive haul of Facebook followers at 52m.
Ever the performer, fans are often able to catch a glimpse of Ronhaldinho performing some of his wizard-like footballing skills while reminiscing on some of the Brazilian’s greatest moments during his career through his social channels.
4. David Beckham - 55m
British football sensation David Beckham hung up his boots nearly 10 years ago but is still one of the most revered figures in world football and modern culture.
Regularly providing updates on his life after football, Becks also loves to share photos of him posing with some of the greatest stars in show business, including, most recently, a photo of him and former Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher.
3. Neymar - 87m
But Messi’s Brazilian teammate, Neymar, doesn’t lag too far behind him, with Neymar claiming an impressive 87m tally of his own - more than some of the world’s biggest brands, McDonald’s and YouTube.
2. Lionel Messi - 104m
In the 24 hours following Lionel Messi’s move from Barcelona to PSG back in August, the Argentinian’s signature helped the Parisian club gain a whopping three million more followers on the photo-sharing platform Instagram.
But the PSG forward lags behind CR7’s impressive Facebook follower haul, despite boasting more than his fellow clubmen, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, at 104m followers.
1. Cristiano Ronaldo - 150m
Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was always going to top this list.
Having recently overtaken Messi in the Forbes list of the world’s highest-paid football players, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner also gets the better of the Argentinian in Facebook followers too.