Meet ‘2026 World Cup’s least-known player’ who gained 4.9 million followers after viral challenge

New Zealand defender Tim Payne met the influencer who propelled him to viral fame on Wednesday, receiving a team shirt after his Instagram following surged to nearly five million in one week.

Argentine social‑media star Valen Scarsini, known as “El Scarso,” urged his followers last week to support the “least known” player at the World Cup, sparking a rapid increase in Payne’s followers from 4,000 to 4.9 million.

The two first met at New Zealand’s training camp in Florida, where Payne expressed gratitude for Scarsini’s support.

“It’s obviously good for myself and New Zealand football too,” Payne said. “It puts a light on us which is a positive thing, but at the same time, for me, I don’t change. I’m still the person I am, so I just keep trying to do what I do, which is play football and focus on trying to perform for my country.”

When asked why he had chosen Scarsini, Payne replied, “Fly to Argentina!”

Payne’s Instagram now has more followers than New Zealand’s All Blacks rugby team, which has 2.8 million.

Scarsini travelled to Florida to watch Payne and the New Zealand side in a pre‑World Cup friendly at Inter Miami’s stadium on Tuesday, where they were defeated 4‑0 by fellow qualifiers Haiti.

New Zealand will play England on Saturday in their final friendly before the World Cup starts. They will face Iran, Egypt and Belgium in Group G of the 2026 tournament.

The post Meet ‘2026 World Cup’s least-known player’ who gained 4.9 million followers after viral challenge appeared first on Vanguard News.