These were the world's 10 most popular sports tweets of 2016
Twitter is still the place sports fans go for up-to-the-minute news and analysis about the teams, players and games they love.
Below, check out the 10 most popular sports tweets of 2016 according to Twitter, which allow us to relive a year that provided no shortage of spectacle and entertainment.
Soccer reigned supreme in these worldwide rankings, but there's much more to this list.
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10. Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates Portugal's Euro 2016 win
Ronaldo was injured for the final, but his teammates came through nonetheless.
9. Shaq gets philosophical — or something
The big man remains relevant in retirement.
8. Zlatan marks his final game for Paris Saint-Germain with characteristic humility
Classic Zlatan.
7. Connor McGregor announces he'll "retire young" (spoiler: he didn't retire)
The UFC champ is still fighting.
6. NBA legend Kobe Bryant reflects on his final game
He had one hell of a career.
5. Marshawn Lynch announces NFL retirement with one photo and one emoji
But Marshawn remains number one in our hearts.
4. Leicester City's Christian Fuchs shares raw video of teammates celebrating their Premier League win
That's some pure, uncut joy.
3. Zlatan reveals his next destination
Only the biggest clubs for Zlatan, of course.
2. Official account of Muhammad Ali marks the death of a global icon
Rest in peace.
1. Underdog club Leicester City celebrates its first-ever Premier League title
Nearly 400,000 retweets — that's a lot of notifications blowing up someone's phone.
Now here are some of the year's most popular tweets from the world of American sports, which couldn't quite crack the global top 10.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith blasts Kevin Durant for joining Warriors
King James puts the world on notice
Dee Gordon's poignant home run after his teammate's death
Mike Tyson remembers Muhammad Ali
And there you have it — the sports year that was, as viewed through Twitter.
Topics X/Twitter
Sam Laird is Mashable's Senior Sports Reporter. He covers the wide, weird world of sports from all angles -- as well as occasional other topics -- from Mashable's San Francisco bureau. Before joining Mashable in November 2011, his freelance work appeared in publications including the New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Slam, and East Bay Express. Sam is a graduate of UC Berkeley and UC Santa Cruz, and basketball and burritos take up most of his spare time. Follow him on Twitter @samcmlaird.
