SUMMARY
- Oscar winning actor Cillian Murphy was recently questioned if he was the most famous man out of Ireland.
- Cillian Murphy believes that he is not as famous as the soccer player Roy Keane.
Roy Keane is one of the most revered Irishmen worldwide. People from all walks of life seem to like the former Manchester United captain. The 52-year-old was an embodiment of passion and aggression on the pitch. An icon of the sport, Roy Keane is now known for his punditry work.
🚨🚨🎙️| Cillian Murphy when asked if he regards himself as the most famous man out of Ireland:
“No one will be more famous than Roy Keane. I’m a big Roy Keane fan, he’ll always be number one for me.” ❤️🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/w1QmR9UYQc
— centredevils. (@centredevils) March 12, 2024
However, Roy has found himself an unusual well-wisher. It seems the Irish actor Cillian Murphy is among the millions of Irishmen who are in awe of the former Manchester United captain.
Oscar winner Cillian Murphy considers himself a Roy Keane fan
The Oppenheimer actor bagged the Oscar in 2024 for the best male actor. The Academy recognized Cillian’s work as J. Robert Oppenheimer and rewarded the 47-year-old with the prestigious award. While Cillian Murphy’s achievement brought joy to the European nation of Ireland, the actor still believes that he isn’t quite famous yet. Instead, the Oscar winner believes that Roy Keane is still Ireland’s most famous export.
The actor said after the award ceremony on March 10, 2024, “No one will be more famous than Roy Keane. I’m a big Roy Keane fan, he’ll always be number one for me.” It is surprising for Cillian Murphy to comment of such nature since the Peaky Blinders-famed actor isn’t known to be a massive soccer fan. However, it is believed that the 47-year-old supports Celtic in the Scottish Premier League.
Roy Keane’s game by numbers vs. Juventus on this day in 1999:
88% pass accuracy
6 tackles won
2 interceptions
1 goalIconic. 🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/CpDDZrDBju
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) April 21, 2020
It is befitting for Cillian to adore Roy Keane so much. The midfielder was a menace during his playing years, instilling fear in his opponents’ minds with his mere stare. Roy gave his everything on his pitch, and fans loved him for his crunching tackles, and simple yet effective soccer. A serial winner the Irishman lifted 19 major titles as a player.
Trends data proves Cillian Murphy wrong
However, it looked like the actor went too ahead with his love for Roy Keane. Cillian believes that no other Irishman will ever have fame like the former Manchester United player did. However, Google Trends paints a whole different picture. According to the feature, Roy Keane is nowhere near the most famous Irishman.
According to Google Trends, professional MMA fighter Conor McGregor is the most widely known Irishman worldwide. The name of the UFC fighter has been searched a lot of times, which is in no comparison to Roy Keane. Conor McGregor’s fame reached heights in January 2020 when his name appeared in several Google searches.
This was the time when Conor fought Donald Cerrone in a welterweight bout for the main event of UFC 246. The Irishman emerged victorious in the fight thanks to a 40-second 1st round knockout.
Google Trends show that the 35-year-old is more famous than Roy Keane, not only worldwide, but in Ireland as well. The MMA fighter is also searched in more countries than the former ‘Red Devil’. However, it should not come as a surprise as Conor McGregor is a very well-known figure in the MMA world. He is a former 2 division UFC Champion and even a global soccer icon Roy Keane cannot compete with Conor’s popularity.