​Some of World Cup’s biggest winners never made it to the final stages of the tournament but still emerged with careers transformed as tens of millions of new followers flocked to their social media accounts in a matter of weeks and essentially turned a handful of lesser-known soccer stars into global celebrities overnight.Vozinha of Cabo Verde.Getty ImagesVozinha, Cabo Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper, went from 50,000 Instagram followers to 1 million within 24 hours of his team’s stunning 0-0 tie against Spain in June and, by Wednesday, had topped 29.3 million.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe said in an Instagram video posted this week he never imagined his unforgettable underdog performance for Cabo Verde, the third-smallest nation by population to ever qualify for the World Cup, would make him a viral star but called it “very gratifying” and promised “more coming soon.”Norwegian striker Erling Haaland was far from unknown before this year’s tournament—he already had about 40 million Instagram followers coming into the World Cup, but his goofy demeanor in social media posts and interviews, crucial goals and Norway’s surprisingly deep run gained him another 24 million.New Zealand defender Tim Payne had fewer than 5,000 Instagram followers before the tournament but a mission by influencer Valen Scarsini to find the World Cup’s “least-known footballer” skyrocketed his following to 5.6 million—more than the entire population of New Zealand—while he also landed a contract with top Paraguay team Club Olimpia.Eloy Room, goalkeeper for Curaçao, skyrocketed in popularity after making a record-tying 15 saves in a match against Ecuador and went from 90,000 to 1.1 million.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementTeenage sensation Gilberto Mora, 17, of Mexico was already considered a prodigy in his country and counted about 1 million Instagram followers, but his fearless play at the tournament—and comparisons to soccer legends like Pelé—made him a global phenomenon who now has 7.3 million followers.A large-scale campaign championed by CazéTV and social media influencers from Brazil made defender Douglas Santos’ Instagram following skyrocket nearly 1,200%—from about 190,000 before the World Cup to 2.6 million.Established global stars like Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (already the most-followed celebrity on Instagram), Brazil’s Neymar, England’s Jude Bellingham, Argentina’s Lionel Messi and France’s Kylian Mbappé have gained another 10 million, 6.5 million, 6 million, 5.8 million and 4 million Instagram followers, respectively, since the start of the World Cup.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSocial media followings have become a major indicator of an athlete’s commercial value—and financial potential. Companies are eager to gain access to the millions of potential customers online whom athletes are able to access through their followings, and huge audiences can lead to sponsorships, higher appearance