Tim Payne
One of the most striking cases is that of Tim Payne, New Zealand defender and Wellington Phoenix player, who went from obscurity to virality thanks to the initiative of Argentine influencer Valen Scarsini. Until May 2026, Payne had barely 4,700 followers on Instagram. After a community campaign aimed at “feeding the legend” of the footballer ahead of the World Cup, his account surpassed half a million followers.
The strategy was based on memes, messages, and massive support on social media, and it quickly transcended borders. Personalities like Bizarrap joined the phenomenon, amplifying its cultural and media reach. The case of Payne is not isolated: Scarsini had already tried this method in Central America, where forward Andrés “El Toro” Jiménez went from 900 to 176,000 followers and received offers from First Division clubs.