‘Gracias, hermano’: All Whites defender Tim Payne gets surprise social media boost from Argentinian influencer
Tim Payne celebrates after scoring a goal for the Wellington Phoenix in 2024.
Photo: Photosport
New Zealand footballer Tim Payne’s become the hottest player on the internet, surging past the million followers mark on Instagram, after an Argentinian influencer’s call to make him a “World Cup hero”.
Tim Payne’s Instagram has exploded, following the influence of an Argentinan social media influencer.
Photo: Instagram
Just two days ago, Payne’s total was just over 4700, but after Valen Scarsini claimed he had identified Payne as the player with the lowest number of followers going to the World Cup, his count has exploded.
“Just want to say a massive thank you first to you Valen, it’s been a pretty crazy 48 hours to say the least,” said Payne, in his first post for two months.
“I just wanted to also express that I am very grateful to be representing my country at this World Cup and I appreciate all the love from all around the world. Muchas Gracias!”
Valen Scarsini claimed after analysing all the players in each squad, that New Zealander Tim Payne’s 4700-strong Instagram count needed a boost.
Speaking in Spanish to his millions of followers on TikTok and Instagram, Scarsini urged them to make Payne a World Cup hero.
“Tim Payne is a defender and has a very difficult task: help [the All Whites] win their first World Cup match. They have never won one.
“Explode his posts with likes and comments. We need to start naming Tim Payne everywhere.
“You have to make videos feeding the legend of Tim Payne. If you have the World Cup album, upload a photo with your sticker.”
Scarsini’s call has seen Payne’s Instagram profile amass followers at an alarming rate. Early Friday morning, Payne’s follower count was rising at 1000 a minute, and hit the 1 million mark in the mid-morning.
New Zealand’s Tim Payne (R) during New Zealand vs Chile, FIFA Series Tournament at Eden Park, Auckland, 2026: Photosport via AFP.
Photo: WWW.PHOTOSPORT.CL
Payne’s last post was in March, when he played his 50th game for New Zealand in a FIFA World Series match. The post has now been viewed more than 500,000 times and attracted nearly 70,000 comments.
Scarsini has since revealed that Payne has been in touch to thank him.
“Was wondering why my socials were blowing up and found your post, man,” wrote Payne. “Appreciate the love! Gracias, hermano.”
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