Twitter: The Top 20 Professional Athletes with the Most Followers

Social media is all the rage these days, and professional—as well as many amateur athletes, much to the chagrin of their coaches—can be found all over the Twitterverse.

Here are the top 20 professional athletes in terms of Twitter followers based on numbers from TwitterCounters.com from Monday, March 26, 2012:

20 Carlos Puyol

NAME: Carlos Puyol

SPORTS RANKING: 20

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 207

TWITTER ADDRESS: @Carlos5Puyol

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/Carles5puyol

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Barcelona-La Liga

FOLLOWERS: 2,446,408

FOLLOWING: 84

TWEETS: 1,010

THE SKINNY: The first of three Barcelona players on the list (teammate and fellow defender Gerard Pique finished No. 21 and No. 208 worldwide, one spot behind Puyol), the curly headed veteran helped lead the Catalans to a UEFA Champions League win over Manchester United in last year’s finals, 3-1.

19 Rio Ferdinand

NAME: Rio Ferdinand

SPORTS RANKING: 19

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 200

TWITTER ADDRESS: @rioferdy5

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/rioferdy5

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Manchester United-English Premier League

FOLLOWERS: 2,394,640

FOLLOWING: 305

TWEETS: 8,723

THE SKINNY: Another vet defender squeezes into the Top 20 thanks to his solid career at Old Trafford.

18 Diego Forlan

NAME: Diego Forlan

SPORTS RANKING: 18

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 198

TWITTER ADDRESS: @DiegoForlan7

FOLLOWERS: 2,474,500

FOLLOWING: 105

TWEETS: 712

THE SKINNY: The Uruguayan national standout, the blond-locked Forlan has taken his scoring prowess to Italy and Inter Milan this season from Atletico Madrid.

17 Serena Williams

NAME: Serena Williams

SPORTS RANKING: 17

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 189

TWITTER ADDRESS: @serenawilliams

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/serenawilliams

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Women’s Professional Tennis

FOLLOWERS: 2,553,790

FOLLOWING: 2,212

TWEETS: 10,173

THE SKINNY: The only female in the Top 20, the younger Williams sister has seen her game drop of a bit the last couple years, but her presence in the social media world remains solid.

16 Floyd Mayweather

NAME: Floyd Mayweather

SPORTS RANKING: 16

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 178

TWITTER ADDRESS: @FloydMayweather

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/FloydMayweather

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Professional Boxer

FOLLOWERS: 2,564,789

FOLLOWING: 60

TWEETS: 2,421

THE SKINNY: “Money” faces Miguel Cotto on May 5 here in Las Vegas, but the fight everyone is waiting for is with Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather effectively uses Twitter as a marketing tool, a spot to re-Tweet all the love he gets from his followers and a vehicle to show off big winning sports tickets like the one pictured above. Sometimes it's good to be Floyd.

15 Cesc Fabregas

NAME: Cesc Fabregas

SPORTS RANKING: 15

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 166

TWITTER ADDRESS: @cesc4official

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/cesc4official

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Barcelona-La Liga

FOLLOWERS: 2,729,058

FOLLOWING: 70

TWEETS: 1,545

THE SKINNY: Another Barca player, Fabregas went to Spain this season after playing for Arsenal last season and has fit in well with Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi on the world’s most talented team.

14 Andres Iniesta

NAME: Andres Iniesta

SPORTS RANKING: 14

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 165

TWITTER ADDRESS: @andresiniesta8

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/andresiniesta8

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Barcelona-La Liga

FOLLOWERS: 2,722,148

FOLLOWING: 34

TWEETS: 288

THE SKINNY: Yet another Barcelona star, this midfielder is a big reason why Messi scores so many goals every season at Camp Nou.

13 Lamar Odom

NAME: Lamar Odom

SPORTS RANKING: 13

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 162

TWITTER ADDRESS: @RealLamarOdom

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/RealLamarOdom

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Basketball-Mavericks-NBA

FOLLOWERS: 2,794,133

FOLLOWING: 45

TWEETS: 3,720

THE SKINNY: Funny how Kobe Bryant isn’t on this list, but a guy like Odom is impressively high. Why? The Kardashian Bounce brother and  a reality TV show with wife Khloe. If there’s one family that knows how to Tweet, it’s the Kardashians with a litter of Twitterers.

12 Dwayne Wade

NAME: Dwayne Wade

SPORTS RANKING: 12

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 150

TWITTER ADDRESS: @DwayneWade

FOLLOW TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/DwyaneWade

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Basketball-Heat-NBA

FOLLOWERS: 2,848,176

FOLLOWING: 339

TWEETS: 4,507

THE SKINNY: LeBron James’ running mate in South Beach, Wade has always been high on this list and could get to 3 million followers should the Heat win the NBA Championship in June.

11 Tony Hawk

NAME: Tony Hawk

SPORTS RANKING: 11

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 149

TWITTER ADDRESS: @tonyhawk

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Professional Skateboarder

FOLLOWERS: 2,913,956

FOLLOWING: 2,750

TWEETS: 5,608

THE SKINNY: One of the most decent people on this list, Hawk brought skateboarding into the mainstream and still has the skills to thrill even at his age.

10 Dwight Howard

NAME: Dwight Howard

SPORTS RANKING: 10

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 137

TWITTER ADDRESS: @DwightHoward

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/DwightHoward

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Basketball-Magic-NBA

FOLLOWERS: 3,102,156

FOLLOWING: 7,554

TWEETS: 16,300

THE SKINNY: Howard has finally decided to stay put in Orlando and nobody on this list follows more people (7,554) than Superman does.

9 Chad Ochocinco

NAME: Chad Ochocinco

SPORTS RANKING: 9

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 126

TWITTER ADDRESS: @ochocinco

FOLLOW AT TWIITER URL: http://twitter.com/ochocinco

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Football-NFL-Patriots

FOLLOWERS: 3,324,574

FOLLOWING: 1

TWEETS: 34,486

THE SKINNY: Although his talent on the gridiron has diminished, The Wide Receiver Formerly Known As Chad Johnson Tweets more than anyone on the list (34,486) and follows less people (1) than anyone also.

8 Lance Armstrong

NAME: Lance Armstrong

SPORTS RANKING: 8

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 117

TWITTER ADDRESS: @lancearmstrong

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Retired Cyclist

FOLLOWERS: 3,357,729

FOLLOWING: 352

TWEETS: 8,633

THE SKINNY: Another guy who has always been high on the world and sports Twitter lists, Armstrong’s struggle to overcome testicular cancer has earned him many devoted followers.

7 Ronaldinho

NAME: Ronaldinho

SPORTS RANKING: 7

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 115

TWITTER ADDRESS: @10Ronaldinho

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/10Ronaldinho

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Flamengo-Campeonato Brasileiro

FOLLOWERS: 3,386,068

FOLLOWING: 12

TWEETS: 1,122

THE SKINNY: The Brazilian wizard returned home this season after playing for AC Milan in Series A in Italy, and he has more followers than any other South America athlete other than Neymar.

6 Wayne Rooney

NAME: Wayne Rooney

SPORTS RANKING: 6

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 97

TWITTER ADDRESS: @WayneRooney

FOLLOW AT URL LINK: http://twitter.com/WayneRooney

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Manchester United-English Premier League

FOLLOWERS: 3,676,761

FOLLOWING: 83

TWEETS: 800

THE SKINNY: Rooney is the top-ranking Twitter athlete in England and is having another solid year for the Red Devils who are in a tight title race with rival Manchester City in the EPL.

5 Neymar

NAME: Neymar Junior

SPORTS RANKING: 5

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 93

TWITTER ADDRESS: @Njr92

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/Njr92

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Santos-Campeonato Brasileiro

FOLLOWERS: 3,779,960

FOLLOWING: 606

TWEETS: 8,257

THE SKINNY: The youngest member of the Top 20 at age 20, Neymar was rumored to be looking to move to Real Madrid last year before deciding to stay in his native Brazil. Now Barcelona wants the phenom to come to Camp Nou and play with Messi and Fabregas next season. 

4 LeBron James

NAME: LeBron James

SPORTS RANKING: 4

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 77

TWITTER ADDRESS: @KingJames

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/KingJames

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Basketball-Heat-NBA

FOLLOWERS: 4,085,293

FOLLOWING: 267

TWEETS: 2,491

THE SKINNY: James’ latest notable Tweet came this weekend (pictured above) as he and his Heat teammates donned hoodies to pay homage to Treyvon Martin, the 17-year-old unarmed Florida boy who was killed by a neighborhood watch captain outside his stepmother’s home. He was making his way home from the store after buying a can of iced tea and a bag of Skittles.

James has always been a big Twitter guy.

3 Shaquille O'Neal

NAME: Shaquille O’Neal

SPORTS RANKING: 3

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 49

TWITTER ADDRESS: @SHAQ

FOLLOW AT TWITTER URL: http://twitter.com/SHAQ

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Retired NBA Player

FOLLOWERS: 5,363,413

FOLLOWING: 654

TWEETS: 4,268

THE SKINNY: Shaq Fu has always had a wonderful sense of humor, and the TNT analyst has parlayed his wit and popularity to become the top American athlete on the social medium with over five million followers. Needless to say, Shaq is also the biggest athlete physically on this list.

2 Cristiano Ronaldo

NAME: Cristiano Ronaldo

SPORTS RANKING: 2

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 22

TWITTER ADDRESS: @Cristiano

FOLLOW AT URL LINK: http://twitter.com/Cristiano

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Real Madrid-La Liga

FOLLOWERS: 7,915,204

FOLLOWING: 45

TWEETS: 774

THE SKINNY: The guy who gets to call Sports Illustrated 2011 swimsuit edition cover girl Irina Shayk his girlfriend, Ronaldo has it all: one of the highest contracts in professional sports, model good looks and skills beyond compare (save for Messi) on the soccer pitch. No wonder almost eight million people (including myself) are now following CR7.

1 Kaka

NAME: Kaka

SPORTS RANKING: 1

WORLDWIDE RANKING: 18

TWITTER ADDRESS: @KAKA

FOLLOW AT URL LINK: http://twitter.com/KAKA

SPORT-TEAM-LEAGUE: Soccer-Real Madrid-La Liga

FOLLOWERS: 9,282,765

FOLLOWING: 376

TWEETS: 2,302

THE SKINNY: So you probably thought Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods or Lionel Messi would be No. 1 right? Guess again. Ronaldo’s teammate at the Bernabeu, Kaka grabs the honors in great part for his South American roots (Brazil), European team (Real Madrid) and his skill on the field.

Kaka, who only Tweets about one time a day, is projected to hit the 18 million mark in 460 days (TwitterCounter.com) and gained 25,505 followers yesterday alone. Kind of makes a guy with 25 total followers feel really small.  Really, really small.

Conclusion

There’s a lot to be learned from Twitter and all these stats. Musicians dominate the top of the list led by Lady Gaga (21.6 million followers) and Justin Bieber (18.9 million). Athletes do pretty good, especially soccer players who took 10 of the 20 spots on this latest ranking, which is refreshed daily at TwitterCounter.com. Basketball players (5 of Top 20) also do pretty well.

Noticeable is the lack of a baseball player, hockey player or golfer in the Top 20 and only one tennis player (Williams) and one boxer (Mayweather) cracked the list.

> Follow me on Twitter @KevinStott11

Kevin Stott has been a sports writer for the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s View Newspapers and Gaming Today and bleeds Chelsea FC blue. His cat Saki, a rabid Arsenal supporter, has been banned from Twitter for life for using foul language in specific threats to dogs and birds last summer. Bad kitty.