| Updated: Football keeps proving that trophies are not the only thing clubs compete for. In the Champions League’s league phase era, global reach on social media has become its own battleground, with elite sides chasing followers on X, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok as fiercely as they chase points on the pitch. This week SportingPedia analysed the official accounts of 36 clubs involved in Europe’s top competition, tracking their combined audiences across the four major platforms. The data shows a landscape dominated by a small group of global superbrands at the top, a broad middle of well-supported clubs, and a handful of rising names still chasing their first million followers.
The research finds that only two clubs – Real Madrid and Barcelona – boast fan bases above 300 million, while ten clubs in total sit above the 100 million mark. At the other end of the scale, five teams remain below 1 million followers, and the gap between the most and least followed sides has grown to well over 1,000 to 1. Another curious revelation is that Real and Barcelona come on top on each platform, but the chasing pack differs.
Champions League Clubs with 100+ Million Followers on Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok)
Superclubs: Real Madrid, Barcelona and the 100M+ elite
Real Madrid and Barcelona remain in a class of their own. Real Madrid tops the chart with a combined 430.5 million followers, split across 132 million on Facebook, 180 million on Instagram, 48.8 million on X and 69.7 million on TikTok. Barcelona follows with 378.2 million (123m Facebook, 146m Instagram, 46.1m X, 63.1m TikTok). Together, the two Spanish giants account for 808.7 million followers – roughly one out of every three fans in the entire dataset.
Behind them, a group of eight clubs form the rest of the 100M+ bracket. PSG (185.1m) lead the chase outside Spain’s big two, followed by Manchester City (164.1m), Liverpool (159.2m) and Juventus (157.6m). Chelsea (149.4m) and Bayern Munich (140.2m) complete the 140m+ group, while Arsenal (111.3m) and Tottenham (106.3m) have now both crossed the 100 million line. This top ten group underlines how social media power is concentrated among a familiar set of names that also dominate recent European campaigns.
Champions League Clubs with Less Than 100 Million Followers on Social Media (Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok)
The middle ground: from Atletico Madrid and Inter to emerging names
Twenty-two clubs sit in the “middle ground” between 1 million and 100 million followers. Atletico Madrid (72.33m) head this tier, followed by Inter (69.7m) and Borussia Dortmund (59.0m), all of whom command sizable global fan bases but still sit some distance behind the 100M+ elite. Galatasaray (48.4m) are the most followed club from outside the traditional big five leagues, edging out Ajax (25.5m), Monaco (24.0m) and Marseille (21.8m).
Further down, clubs such as Napoli (19.2m), Newcastle (18.9m), Bayer Leverkusen (17.0m), Athletic Bilbao (16.68m), Benfica (12.1m) and Sporting Lisbon (10.91m) illustrate the depth of support for historic and resurgent sides across Europe. PSV (5.39m), Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30m), Atalanta (3.61m), Olympiacos (3.42m) and Club Brugge (3.04m) sit in the lower part of this band, while Copenhagen (1.55m) and Kairat (1.25m) hover just above the one-million threshold. For many of these clubs, their social media following reflects both domestic strength and periodic breakthroughs on the European stage.
The race to reach 1 million followers
At the bottom of the ranking, five clubs are still chasing their first million followers across the four platforms. Slavia Prague (0.91m), Royal Union Saint-Gilloise (0.88m), Qarabag (0.52m), Pafos (0.32m) and Bodo/Glimt (0.29m) make up this group. While their numbers are modest compared to the giants at the top, participation in European competition offers them a platform to grow quickly, especially if strong performances or standout players capture wider attention.
The contrast with Real Madrid is stark: the Spanish champions have more than 430 million followers, compared to fewer than one million for each of these five clubs – a gap of more than 1,400 to 1 between the most and least followed sides in the Champions League.
Preferences differ by platform
Across all 36 clubs, Facebook and Instagram remain the biggest platforms by total followers, with approximately 822.7 million and 811 million followers respectively. TikTok has firmly established itself as the third pillar of clubs’ online presence, with a combined 534.3 million followers, while X trails on around 264.3 million.
For many clubs outside the very top tier, TikTok in particular offers a way to narrow the gap, as shorter-form, global-facing content can reach new audiences relatively quickly. For the biggest sides, the numbers confirm that their reach is genuinely multi-platform, with nine-figure fan bases spread across all four major networks.
Across every platform, the top two never change. Real Madrid lead with roughly 50–180 million followers depending on the network, while Barcelona consistently rank second with around 45–150 million. The rest of the top five varies by platform. On Facebook, Bayern Munich follow at around 60 million, with Liverpool and Chelsea close behind in the high-50 millions. On Instagram, PSG, Juventus, and Manchester City sit in the mid-50 to mid-60 million range. On X, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Arsenal cluster between 20 and 25 million. On TikTok, PSG, Tottenham, and Juventus round out the top five with roughly 40–50 million followers.
Detailed Breakdown by Platform
*All figures are in millions
| Club | X | TikTok | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid | 132 | 180 | 48.8 | 69.7 | 430.50 |
| Barcelona | 123 | 146 | 46.1 | 63.1 | 378.20 |
| PSG | 54 | 65.7 | 14.6 | 50.8 | 185.10 |
| Manchester City | 56 | 56.3 | 17.6 | 34.2 | 164.10 |
| Liverpool | 58 | 49 | 24.1 | 28.1 | 159.20 |
| Juventus | 46 | 60 | 9.4 | 42.2 | 157.60 |
| Chelsea | 58 | 44.5 | 25.2 | 21.7 | 149.40 |
| Bayern Munich | 63 | 44.1 | 6.4 | 26.7 | 140.20 |
| Arsenal | 47 | 31.7 | 21.4 | 11.2 | 111.30 |
| Tottenham | 37 | 17.4 | 8.7 | 43.2 | 106.30 |
| Atletico Madrid | 23 | 17.9 | 0.93 | 30.5 | 72.33 |
| Inter | 34 | 14.3 | 2.8 | 18.6 | 69.70 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 16 | 20.8 | 4 | 18.2 | 59.00 |
| Galatasaray | 12 | 17.6 | 14.8 | 4 | 48.40 |
| Ajax | 5 | 8.6 | 1.8 | 10.1 | 25.50 |
| Monaco | 12 | 2.9 | 2 | 7.1 | 24.00 |
| Marseille | 8.7 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 5.5 | 21.80 |
| Napoli | 5.5 | 5.3 | 2 | 6.4 | 19.20 |
| Newcastle | 5 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 7.7 | 18.90 |
| Bayer Leverkusen | 6.7 | 4.6 | 0.48 | 5.2 | 16.98 |
| Athletic Bilbao | 4.3 | 1.6 | 0.98 | 9.8 | 16.68 |
| Benfica | 4.1 | 3.4 | 1.8 | 2.8 | 12.10 |
| Sporting Lisbon | 3.2 | 2.8 | 0.91 | 4 | 10.91 |
| Villarreal | 2.5 | 1.7 | 0.63 | 3.6 | 8.43 |
| PSV | 1.3 | 1.4 | 0.49 | 2.2 | 5.39 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 1.7 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 1.7 | 5.30 |
| Atalanta | 0.84 | 1.1 | 0.47 | 1.2 | 3.61 |
| Olympiacos | 1.1 | 1.1 | 0.25 | 0.97 | 3.42 |
| Club Brugge | 0.54 | 0.58 | 0.22 | 1.7 | 3.04 |
| Copenhagen | 0.32 | 0.57 | 0.12 | 0.54 | 1.55 |
| Kairat | 0.021 | 0.54 | 0.005 | 0.68 | 1.25 |
| Slavia Prague | 0.23 | 0.36 | 0.07 | 0.25 | 0.91 |
| Union Saint-Gilloise | 0.22 | 0.26 | 0.06 | 0.34 | 0.88 |
| Qarabag | 0.24 | 0.056 | 0.06 | 0.16 | 0.52 |
| Pafos | 0.035 | 0.16 | 0.008 | 0.12 | 0.32 |
| Bodo/Glimt | 0.11 | 0.11 | 0.05 | 0.02 | 0.29 |