Soccer Aid 2025: Google Visibility Trends and Publisher Insights in UK Mobile News Boxes
17. June 2025On June 15, Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2025 returned to Manchester’s Old Trafford stadium, once again bringing together celebrities and former footballers for a match in support of a good cause. With goals, surprises, and viral moments both on and off the pitch, the event attracted strong public interest across news and entertainment outlets alike.
To understand how news publishers positioned themselves around the event, we analyzed the UK mobile News Boxes on Google between June 15 and 16 using the Trisolute News Dashboard. The analysis is based on keywords sourced from Google News and Google Trends that were thematically linked to Soccer Aid and generated visibility within this context.
Let’s take a look at which publishers achieved the highest visibility during Soccer Aid 2025 and what kind of content performed particularly well in the mobile News Boxes.
Keywords that ranked for Soccer Aid 2025
This list contains the keywords that generated rankings in UK mobile News Boxes in the time period from June 15 to June 16 and were thematically related to the Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2025. The keywords are sorted in descending order according to their number of rankings. The ranking values in brackets after the keywords represent the number of different appearances on a 15-minute basis in the mobile News Boxes.
In total, 21 keywords gained rankings during the examined time period, adding up to 4,786 rankings. Here are some interesting patterns that emerge when analyzing the list.
Note: Visibility in Google’s mobile News Boxes reflects not only user interest but also how Google surfaces and ranks news content. Factors like publisher authority, article structure, and topical relevance contribute alongside search behavior.
Interesting patterns
- Though the keyword “soccer aid” clearly dominated with 1,338 rankings, celebrities like Louis Tomlinson (2 keywords, 566 rankings), Tony Bellew (330 rankings), and Sam Thompson (4 keywords, 576 rankings) garnered significant attention. These names even outperformed some well-known footballers, indicating not just public interest but also that media coverage heavily favored celebrity involvement. In total, 14 out of the 21 keywords contain a celebrity’s name, adding up to 2,848 rankings (60% of total rankings).
- Despite the focus on entertainment personalities, former professionals were also featured prominently. Wayne Rooney (398) ranked particularly well, likely benefiting from both his legacy status and his record-setting goal during the match. Joe Hart (154) and Alex Scott (168) also appeared frequently, showing that established football names still play a key role in shaping event-related coverage.
- While general terms like “soccer aid 2025” had 302 rankings, more specific queries like “soccer aid score” (80 rankings) and “soccer aid kick off” (44 rankings) indicate that detailed information about the event’s timings and outcomes also worked well in Google’s News Boxes. This trend underscores the importance of providing precise and timely content to gain visibility and relevance for events like Soccer Aid.
- The keyword “who is angry ginge” (238), alongside “angry ginge” (72), stood out as an example of providing context for lesser-known participants. Angry Ginge, a UK-based YouTuber, may not be too well known outside of his bubble, but his visibility in the News Boxes highlights how explainers and background content around more unfamiliar figures can become ranking-relevant, especially when tied to live TV exposure.
Let’s now take a look at the publishers that made an appearance in the UK’s mobile News Boxes for these keywords:
Publishers in the UK mobile News Boxes for Soccer Aid 2025
This screenshot from the Trisolute News Dashboard shows the most visible publishers on the Soccer Aid mobile News Boxes and their courses of visibility throughout the examined time period from June 15 to 16. The match started on June 15 at 19:30 BST.
Top publishers on Soccer Aid for UNICEF 2025 in UK mobile News Boxes
Before diving into the publisher-specific analysis, it’s worth noting that several social media platforms appeared among the ten most visible domains in the UK mobile News Boxes during the Soccer Aid 2025 weekend. Facebook (11.85 %, 3rd place), X (formerly Twitter) (4.10 %, 7th) and Instagram (3.52 %, 10th) were all highly present across the rankings. However, since this article focuses on editorial content from news publishers, these platforms have been excluded from the detailed breakdown below. Their strong performance nonetheless highlights the continued relevance of social platforms when it comes to real-time event engagement.
The following sections look at the news outlets that achieved the highest visibility for Soccer Aid 2025:
- The Sun (thesun.co.uk)
The Sun led the ranking among news publishers with an average visibility of 18.20%. The outlet peaked in the early hours of June 15, between 1:00 and 4:00 a.m., reaching 38.24%, and saw a second notable spike at 7:00 p.m., right before the match started, at 26.59% visibility. The Sun ranked for 589 keywords in total, with “soccer aid” being the most frequently appearing term (156 rankings), which accounted for 12% of all publisher rankings for that keyword. The most visible article was a live coverage piece titled “Soccer Aid 2025 LIVE SCORE: Action ON NOW as England take on World XI“.
- Daily Mail (dailymail.co.uk)
Close behind was the Daily Mail, with 15.95% visibility. It had its highest peaks on June 15 at 11:00 a.m. (29.31%) and 1:00 p.m. (28.23%), with sustained presence across the day and another uptick on June 16 at 11:00 p.m. (25.55%). The Daily Mail ranked for the most keywords overall (604) and also had the highest number of appearances for the keyword “soccer aid” (172), accounting for 13% of the total publisher rankings for this term. Its most visible article was more entertainment-focused: “Sam Thompson comes face-to-face with Louis Tomlinson for Soccer Aid match after holding ‘peace dinner’,” capturing pre-match narratives around some of the celebrity players.
- Manchester Evening News (manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
With 5.91% visibility, Manchester Evening News reached its highest share between midnight and 4:00 a.m. on June 15 (38.24%), with two smaller peaks later at 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. The outlet achieved 277 keyword rankings, with its strongest performance on “who is angry ginge” (64 rankings), making up 27% of all publisher rankings for that term, the highest single share for a specific keyword in this dataset. The top article, “Soccer Aid star Angry Ginge sends X-rated message to Carlos Tevez after gruesome injury,” reflects a focus on a highly engaging and unexpected post-match moment.
- BBC (bbc.com)
The BBC appeared with 4.92% visibility, though it had little to no presence on June 15, the day of the actual match. Instead, the BBC focused its coverage on the day after, with peaks on June 16 at 6:00 a.m. (11.68%) and 5:00 p.m. (11%). With 113 keyword rankings in total, the BBC’s top term was “soccer aid” (34 rankings), which represented just 3% of all rankings for that keyword. The most visible article was titled “Soccer Aid: Big Zuu and Carlos Tevez help World XI to victory as £15m raised for Unicef” and emphasized the charity aspect and the outcome of the event.
- Liverpool Echo (liverpoolecho.co.uk)
The Liverpool Echo achieved 4.32% visibility with several modest peaks: June 15 at 8:00 p.m. (8.1%) and June 16 at 2:00 a.m. (9.34%) and 7:00 p.m. (9.03%). The outlet reached 173 keyword rankings, with “soccer aid” accounting for 50 of them (4% of the total for this keyword). The most prominent article was “Soccer Aid ‘worlds colliding’ moment as Hollywood star joins Wayne Rooney in surprise appearance,” showing a strong focus on celebrity highlights throughout the event.
- talkSPORT (talksport.com)
As the only sports-focused publisher in the list, talkSPORT reached 4.07% visibility. It had a more evenly distributed presence with peaks on June 15 at 3:00 p.m. (5.56%) and on June 16 at 10:00 a.m. (8.08%) and 2:00 p.m. (7.87%). The outlet ranked for 136 keywords, with a heavy concentration on “soccer aid” (80 rankings), equating to 6% of the total for that term. The most visible article was “Broadcaster issues apology after Tyson Fury’s X-rated comment live on TV during Soccer Aid“.
- Birmingham Mail (birminghammail.co.uk)
Last but not least, the Birmingham Mail recorded 3.59% visibility, peaking on June 16 between 4:00 and 6:00 a.m. (7.68%). It achieved 156 keyword rankings, most of which were connected to “tony bellew” (52 rankings), giving it a 16% share of all publisher rankings for that keyword, a strong performance on a niche topic. The most visible article was titled “Tony Bellew’s worrying comment after quitting Soccer Aid minutes into game“.
Key takeaways for News Publishers
The analysis of UK mobile News Box rankings around Soccer Aid 2025 highlights several key insights for news publishers. While the event is rooted in sport, only one dedicated sports outlet (talkSPORT) made it into the top publisher list. In contrast, a notable number of local and regional news brands, such as Manchester Evening News, Liverpool Echo, and Birmingham Mail, performed well, often by capitalizing on specific storylines.
Across the board, celebrity-focused content dominated visibility. Names like Louis Tomlinson, Sam Thompson, and Tony Bellew drove a large share of rankings, with some publishers tailoring headlines and angles to amplify this focus. At the same time, legacy football figures such as Wayne Rooney and Joe Hart also attracted strong attention, especially when tied to on-pitch moments.
Keywords related to real-time updates and match specifics, like “score” or “kick off,” appeared less frequently but still generated visibility, showing that detailed and service-oriented content had its place, particularly in the hours surrounding the match.
Explainer content around lesser-known participants, such as YouTuber Angry Ginge, also ranked well, especially when tied to standout moments or online buzz. This suggests that even fringe figures can gain visibility if coverage reacts quickly and provides contextual value.
Timing-wise, many publishers benefited from strategic peaks, either in the early morning of match day or directly before and after key moments. Others, like the BBC, focused more on post-event summaries, charity outcomes, and broader context, showing that follow-up coverage also has ranking potential, especially for more generalist outlets.
Overall, the analysis confirms that visibility for the Soccer Aid 2025 in Google’s mobile News Boxes was shaped by a mix of celebrity-driven storytelling and timing, with opportunities not just during, but also before and after the event.
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