By analysing the world’s biggest sports leagues, teams and players, TicketSource has highlighted the biggest names and establishments in sport according to influence and authority. The Los Angeles Lakers took the second spot among the world’s most influential sports teams behind English Premier League outfit Manchester United with a score of 8.74 points.
The world’s biggest sports teams:
| Rank | Team | Instagram Followers | Twitter Followers | Facebook Followers | Annual Wikipedia Page Views | Annual Google Searches | Influence score /10 |
| 1 | Manchester United | 47,000,000 | 27,000,000 | 74,639,114 | 6,931,945 | 45,040,000 | 9.52 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Lakers | 17,400,000 | 10,000,000 | 21,657,521 | 2,966,322 | 12,907,000 | 8.74 |
| 3 | New York Yankees | 2,800,000 | 3,500,000 | 7,918,275 | 1,252,899 | 12,623,000 | 8.53 |
| 4 | Dallas Cowboys | 3,600,000 | 3,900,000 | 7,927,993 | 1,109,077 | 51,370,000 | 8.51 |
| 5 | New England Patriots | 4,300,000 | 4,500,000 | 6,527,069 | 1,520,424 | 13,749,000 | 8.08 |
The seventeen-time NBA champions are the top team in their own league, followed by the Golden State Warriors and the Miami Heat:
1. Los Angeles Lakers
Instagram followers – 17.4 million
Twitter followers – 10 million
Facebook followers – 21.7 million
Annual Wikipedia page views – 3 million
Annual Google searches – 12.9 million
2. Golden State Warriors
Instagram followers – 18.6 million
Twitter followers – 6.8 million
Facebook followers – 11.8 million
Annual Wikipedia page views – 1.6 million
Annual Google searches – 15.8 million
3. Miami Heat
Instagram followers – 4.9 million
Twitter followers – 4.8 million
Facebook followers – 14.4 million
Annual Wikipedia page views – 1 million
Annual Google searches – 31.5 million
