Ranking Barcelona Players in Social Follower Growth in '16/17 Season

Barcelona aren't just a club with one of the biggest regular attendances inside their stadium on a matchday, they're also hugely popular in the online world with an enormous social following.

It's hardly surprising; with world-class players from the best of South America to the star-studded home-grown contingent, the individuals are popular in their own right even without the weight of the Barca shirt behind them.

With players more able to connect with their fans, should they choose, through social media, supporters and even casual followers flock to keep up-to-date with the Camp Nou stars in their millions.

Here we take a look at just who the most popular players from the Catalan outfit have been over the course of the 2016/17 season, ranking them by growth across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and detailing where the bulk of their following originates from.

Of course, having a few trophies to show off always helps increase the follower count...

No. 5: Gerard Pique, +10 million

Central defender Pique isn't just a stand-in skipper on the pitch but a beacon of the club's fanbase at times—even if his actions and words on social media can sometimes leave his employers exasperated for unwise comments.

With 14.8 million followers on Twitter, 18.9 million on Facebook and 12.2 million on Instagram, the Spanish international makes a well-rounded presence to follow online.

While on the former platform, he tends to be extremely vocal about his passions—Spanish politics, Spanish sports stars outside of football, battles with Sergio Ramos—his Insta account is far more artsy, low-key and occasionally showing off his sponsors' equipment.

Home life with partner Shakira and their children is also high on the agenda for Pique to display, along with, of course, his successes with Barcelona.

As for his growth of 10 million followers this year...well, the ongoing musings of whether Real Madrid are favoured by the media is fun to watch, no?

No. 4: Andres Iniesta, +16.4 million

Club captain Iniesta might be considering his future, but he'll forever be associated as an integral part of perhaps the best-ever club football side.

The stylish playmaker has the admiration and respect of fans the world over, not just Barca supporters, and it's not hard to see simply from his time on the pitch why his following continues to grow.

Iniesta tallies 16.3 million followers on Twitter, 26.9 million on Facebook and 18.2 million on Instagram.

While not as prolific as Pique on Twitter, he's a more regular poster on Instagram, with gatherings at family and social events and charity work all prevalent on his page.

Most prominently of all, though, are plenty of behind-the-scenes footage and photos that fans are no doubt keen to lap up.

No. 3: Luis Suarez, +21.0 million

Star striker Luis Suarez captures attention easily; he's hot-headed on the pitch and has a tendency to react in the heat of the moment, but he's also a world-class forward who plundered 37 goals in '16/17.

He's not a tremendously regular presence on the social stage, which might explain his (relatively) low Twitter count of 9.5 million followers—many posts are duplicated from Facebook, where he maintains a much higher presence, 18.7 million. On Instagram, he has 22.4 million.

Suarez regularly updates his followers on family life and time away from the game, including some sponsored posts or branded content.

More intriguingly for fans, he also posts plenty of photos with team-mates, action shots and even on-pitch rivals on his Insta account.

Most recently, Suarez has thanked outgoing Barcelona coach Luis Enrique for the success they enjoyed together and wished him luck for the future.

No. 2: Neymar, +52.5 million

Quite the jump in followers for Neymar over the past year, perhaps partly as athletes—elite brands that they essentially are—recognise the importance and the opportunity of social media but also in part down to his own continued sporting success and improvement.

Neymar Jr, to name him by his own social brand, carries 29.3 million followers on Twitter, impressive enough, but blows his team-mates out of the water with a huge 59.7 million on Facebook and 75.5 million on Instagram.

Naturally, there's lots of behind-the-scenes training visuals from the Brazilian, but he also shows off plenty of moments with family and friends along with the customary branded content showcasing.

Neymar's popularity is such that Cristiano Ronaldo is the only player with more followers on Instagram.

No. 1: Lionel Messi, +80.0 million

Perhaps there can be few surprises that Lionel Messi is the player to have seen the most growth in social followers over the last season, given how he was the best in La Liga, the top scorer in Europe and had a highly publicised retirement from international football at the start of the season—which he later reversed.

Messi actually has no Twitter account at all; there's a @TeamMessi account for fans in his brand name by one of his sponsors, but otherwise it's Facebook, where he has an enormous 88.8 million page likes, and Instagram, which houses 72.8 million of his fans.

While Neymar might be the king of Insta at Barca, it's Messi who is second only to Ronaldo on Facebook.

Messi's Insta account is much more based around his life away from the Camp Nou—though not necessarily away from football altogether—with plenty of family images as well as shirt photos and trophy haul pictures.

On Facebook, it's all about the game: opponents, his coaches, goals, sponsorships, celebrations and plenty more besides.

It's a wealth of content for fans to engage with and enjoy, and it's why Messi has seen such substantial growth over the last season in his online following.

All data courtesy of Brandtix.