Spurs are the world’s most searched club – ahead of Man United, Liverpool, Real and Barca

Well this is a bit of a surprise.

There is no doubting that Tottenham Hotspur are a massive club with a big following, but with all due respect, we wouldn't have them down as the world's most popular club. However, the stats don't lie and by one metric at least, they lead the way. Google have released their annual lists of search trends for 2016 this week, and the results are eye-opening to say the least. Some of the results are to be expected. For instance, Lionel Messi is the most searched footballer - but of course he is. The Argentine genius is accompanied in the top five by Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Raheem Sterling and Paul Pogba. All big names at big clubs, but the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, who's not even in the top ten, is something of a surprise. The most searched for football clubs in the world are even more startling. Tottenham Hotspur lead the way at number one, followed by the more predictable Liverpool, and then C.D. Guadalajara, Leicester City and Borussia Dortmund. The lack of Manchester United, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus or Bayern Munich is bizarre considering their much vaunted global appeal, but if we're being cynical, perhaps there's a couple of reasons behind the Lilywhites leading the way. Firstly, as with Leicester City, there may be people unfamiliar with the White Hart Lane club and they've been googled 'Spurs' for clarification. And secondly, the results may have been skewed by people searching for the San Antonio Spurs...