The new year is almost upon us, so it’s the perfect time to look back at what people searched most on Google during 2014.
There was plenty of big news in the sports world this year, and the most-searched sports term of the year was “World Cup,” which followed the No. 1 search term, “Robin Williams,” according to Google Trends. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, spurred by former Boston College baseball player Pete Frates, made the rounds over the summer, and the term came in as the sixth most-searched term on Google this year.
The charity-driven venture also explains the most-searched “what is…?” question of the year: “What is ALS?”
As far as the most-searched people of the year, four sports-related names made their way on the list, but not for the best reasons. NFL running back Ray Rice came in at No. 4 on the list after he was shown on video punching out his then-fiancee, with NASCAR driver Tony Stewart, former Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling and Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson following behind.
Stewart was the driver in a crash that killed a man at a dirt-track race, Sterling was blacklisted from the NBA after he was heard on tape making racially insensitive comments and Peterson was suspended by the NFL after being charged with felony child abuse.
There even is a category for Google’s most-searched selfie and, unsurprisingly, David Ortiz’s selfie with President Barack Obama came in at No. 5 on the list, closely followed by Tennessee Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger’s hilarious selfie showcasing his hair and mustache.
Photo via Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports Images
