Football has been revealed as one of the most popular discussion topics on Twitter over the last  12 months.

Data from the social network showed that the sport was more prone to what it called “surges” in interest. The biggest spike was seen when Manchester United were knocked out of the Champions League by Spanish giants Real Madrid in March.

The list of subjects also included such events as Andy Murray winning in the Wimbledon final, New Year’s Eve and Mumford & Sons’ set at Glastonbury.

However, X Factor pop sensations One Direction came out on top in the table of retweets. Three of the five most retweeted posts came from the group; a birthday celebration published by one member – Niall – for example, was shared more than 375,000 times. In it, he simply said:

“Yesss ! I’m 20 ! Wohooo ! No more teens!”

The two biggest retweeting spikes took place around some more tragic events, however.

A message posted by Glee actress Lea Michele, thanking her fans for their support after her partner and co-star Cory Monteith passed away, was shared around 408,000 times.

A tweet confirming the death of Hollywood star Paul Walker was also shared more than 400,000 times.

With Twitter entering the new year as a publicly owned firm, it is thought that its strategy will be focused on developing its status as a dominant “second screen” application. It has, in recent years, grown to become something of a platform of choice for those who use their smartphones and tablets to find updates on world news, sports and celebrity gossip.

Twitter’s figures should also highlight the importance of using social media in the business world. By providing industry-relevant news content, companies can ensure they come across as authoritative in their respective fields.

Graeme Parton

Graeme has experience creating content for online sources and for the radio, and at university he studied Multimedia Journalism.