Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
Exclusive: Ghana's John Mahama on his planned presidential comeback
In Latin America, sports are much more than mere games. For many, they are part of a country's identity and a source of national pride.
The region has established itself as a leader in various disciplines, from football, with countries like Argentina and Brazil winning the World Cup multiple times, to boxing, racing, and even rodeo.
It’s no surprise that sports hold significant weight on social media among Latin American audiences. Athletes and sports celebrities use these platforms to connect more intimately with their fans, share personal moments, and even monetise their presence.
But if social media were the playing field, the champions would not always be the same as those in the tournaments.
At Global South World, we have created a list of the 75 most influential sports personalities on Instagram in the region.
With the help of Hypeauditor, an AI-powered influencer marketing platform, we have built a ranking based on the Audience Quality Score (AQS). This score, which ranges from 1 to 100, is calculated by measuring four factors: engagement rate, audience quality, follower and following growth, and engagement authenticity. For more details about our methodology, check the bottom of the article.
This is the first piece in a three-part series.
Here are our top 51-75.
Mateus Souza is an emerging internet phenomenon and a passionate football fan.
His humorous videos and sketches about football, where he also showcases his skills as a player, have helped him gather over one million followers on Instagram alone. His account's growth rate on that platform highly surpasses that of similar accounts.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Cássio Roberto Ramos is a professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper. After 12 years with the Brazilian team Corinthians, he recently joined Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, a sports club based in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais.
His career also includes a stint in the Netherlands with PSV and Sparta Rotterdam.
Cássio has also played for Brazil's national team, participating in the 2018 FIFA World Cup and contributing to their victory in the 2019 Copa América.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Stefani Jiménez is not only considered one of the best goalkeepers in Liga MX Femenil but also stands out as a social media content creator. She currently serves as a reserve goalkeeper for the Mexican football club Pachuca Femenil.
Jiménez's previous experiences include playing for FC Juárez, Atlético de San Luis Femenil, and Tigres.
Check out her Instagram profile.
Leonardo Pereira is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for the Brazilian team Flamengo.
Before joining the club based in Rio de Janeiro, the athlete played for other teams, such as Atlético Paranaense and Orlando City in Major League Soccer.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Music is not MC Gui's only passion. The Brazilian funk singer and songwriter is also a racing driver. Through his Instagram account, he shares his car adventures, including his competitions in the NASCAR Brazil Sprint Race.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Norma Duarte Palafox is a Mexican football player who currently plays as a forward for Liga MX Femenil club Juárez.
Palafox has distinguished herself for her performance on the Guadalajara Chivas women's team. She was also part of C.F. Pachuca Femenil and played as a reinforcement for Atlas FC Femenil and Cruz Azul Femenil.
The Mexican sportswoman gained further notoriety by winning the fifth season of "Exatlón USA", a reality TV series that follows a group of athletes undergoing physical and mental challenges.
Check out her Instagram profile.
When visiting Iván Torres' Instagram profile, one might not immediately realise he is a football star. The Paraguayan footballer, who currently plays as a left-back for the sports club Goiás, mostly shares details of his daily life, moments with his family, motivational content, and training routines.
Before joining the Brazilian team, Torres played for the Paraguayan football club Olimpia. He also had stints with Cerro Porteño, another team from Paraguay, and the Argentine team Colón.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Ramon Dino, also known as "O Dinossauro do Acre" (the Dinosaur from Acre), is a professional bodybuilder who competes in the Classic Physique division.
Dino has participated in several international competitions, including the Olympia and the Arnold Classic Ohio, where he emerged victorious in 2023.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Nicole Moreno, also known as Luli or Luli Love, is a Chilean fitness champion, dancer, singer, model, and entrepreneur.
On her Instagram account, Moreno shares her workout routines and passion for bodybuilding. Recently, she was crowned Bikini Overall Champion at the Viña Muscle Show 2024.
Check out her Instagram profile.
María Malibrán, 19, is a content creator and national barrel racing champion. Through her social media platforms, she shares her passion for the countryside, horse riding, and rodeo.
Born in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, the cowgirl started competing at a very young age. Today, she has not only won several national and international championships but has also founded her own line of clothing and accessories for horse enthusiasts.
Check out her Instagram profile.
Rubens Barrichello, also known as "Rubinho," is a professional racing driver from Brazil. He competed in Formula 1 from 1993 to 2011 and achieved 11 Grand Prix victories and 68 podium finishes.
Since 2023, he has been competing full-time in the Brazilian Stock Car Pro Series. He also co-hosts the Brazilian automotive YouTube channel "Acelerados".
Check out his Instagram profile.
Bruno Henrique is a professional footballer who currently plays as a winger for Flamengo and Brazil's national team.
After starting his career in Brazil, Henrique moved abroad in 2016 to join Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg. He returned to his country a year later to play for Santos before joining Flamengo in 2019.
In that same year, Flamengo won the Campeonato Carioca, with Henrique finishing as the top scorer. Flamengo also clinched the Brazilian Serie A and the Copa Libertadores.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Fabián Cubero is a former professional footballer who predominantly played for the Argentine sports club Vélez Sarsfield. Cubero spent most of his career as a right-back and won five league titles with Vélez Sarsfield.
In April 2024, Cubero was announced as the new coach of the Argentine team Sportivo Italiano.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Guilherme Arana is a Brazilian professional footballer. He plays as a left-back for Atlético Mineiro and Brazil's national team.
After starting his career in the Corinthians youth academy, Arana moved up to the first team. His performance during the 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A contributed to the team's victory. The Brazilian athlete has also played for European clubs, including Sevilla FC.
Arana was also part of the national team that won the gold medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Rafael Borré is a Colombian footballer who plays as a forward for the Brazilian sports club Internacional.
Borré's previous experiences in Latin America include playing for the Colombian team Deportivo Cali and the Argentine club River Plate, with whom he won several titles, including the 2018 Copa Libertadores and the 2019 Recopa Sudamericana.
In Europe, Borré played for Spanish clubs Atlético Madrid and Villarreal CF, as well as Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt, where he contributed to their second Europa League title in 2022.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Joaquín Piquerez is a professional footballer who plays for the Brazilian club Palmeiras and Uruguay's national team.
In 2022, he was honoured with the ESPN Bola de Prata Sportingbet Prize for being the best left-back in Brazilian football. Piquerez can also play as a midfielder.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Luccas Abreu is an archery athlete who has gained fame on social media. Through his platforms, Abreu shares moments from his daily life and provides a behind-the-scenes look at this niche sport.
The Brazilian athlete competes internationally and has achieved significant success. In 2022, he won two silver medals in compound archery at the South American Games in Asunción, Paraguay.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Andrés Nicolás D'Alessandro is a retired professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He finished his career with the Brazilian club Internacional de Porto Alegre.
D'Alessandro began his journey with the Argentine club River Plate. He then spent some years with European clubs such as VfL Wolfsburg, Portsmouth, and Real Zaragoza.
The athlete also competed in the Copa America and participated in the Athens Olympics in 2004, where Argentina won a gold medal.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Alejandra Estefanía is a lawyer and fitness model who shares exercise routines on her Instagram account. She also has a background as a teacher and Taekwondo competitor.
Alejandra Estefanía has participated in several international competitions, including Joe Weider's Olympia Amateur, where she secured 3rd place in the Bikini Open Class B category in 2023.
Check out her Instagram profile.
Daniel Corral is a renowned Mexican gymnast who has participated in three Olympic Games and has received several international recognitions.
Among his most notable achievements are the 2011 Pan American Games, where he won two gold medals in the pommel horse and parallel bars finals. Corral also competed in the 2013 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, where he tied with the British gymnast Max Whitlock for the silver medal on the pommel horse. He became the first Mexican gymnast to win a medal in that event.
Check out his Instagram profile.
João Victor Pereira has become a social media reference for motorcycle wheelies and stunt riding.
The young Brazilian began sharing his skills as a teenager. He mainly practices motocross but also enjoys riding various types of vehicles.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Weverton Pereira da Silva is a professional football player who currently plays as a goalkeeper for Palmeiras and Brazil's national team.
Weverton garnered the support of thousands of fans when he won the Campeonato Paranaense with Athletico in 2016. In that same year, he served as the goalkeeper at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where the Brazilian national team clinched the gold medal against Germany.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Gabriel Montiel is not only one of the best-known YouTubers in Latin America, but he is also a former Mexican footballer who played as a midfielder.
His career as an athlete started with the youth team Águilas de Teotihuacán and ended with Murciélagos FC. Although Montiel decided to retire from football to devote himself fully to his career as a YouTuber, the sport is still a significant part of his life.
Montiel, also known as Werevertumorro, is a co-founder of the Kings League Americas, a 7-a-side football league based on Gerard Piqué's Kings League, in which he competes against other content creators and sports celebrities, such as James Rodríguez.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Sol Pérez is an Argentine gymnast, model, and journalist. She started artistic gymnastics at the age of five and is a sports enthusiast. Volleyball, basketball, swimming, and skating are some of the disciplines she has practised throughout her life.
Pérez became a public figure in Argentina when she worked as a weather presenter for the programme Sportia on TyC Sports. She also participated in the dance competition TV series "Bailando por un Sueño" (Dancing for a Dream).
Check out her Instagram profile.
Santiago Arias is a professional football player who currently plays as a defender for the Brazilian team E.C. Bahia and Colombia's national team.
He is considered one of the best full-backs in Colombian football. Arias has also played for European clubs such as Atlético de Madrid and the Dutch club PSV, where he stood out for his performance in the 2014-15 Eredivisie.
Check out his Instagram profile.
Discover the second part of the list (numbers 26-50) on June 29.
This list was created with the help of Hypeauditor and is based on the Audience Quality Score (AQS). In case of a tie between two or more personalities, we used the engagement rate to establish the order. The keywords used in our search were 'athletes' and 'sports' in all Latin American countries. We focused on personalities with more than one million followers.
