Brazil's FIFA World Cup 2026 group-stage match against Haiti has generated the biggest surge in Google searches worldwide since the tournament kicked off on June 11, according to Google Trends' global Rising Queries.

The match ranked first among football fixtures experiencing the fastest growth in search interest, ahead of Portugal versus Uzbekistan and France versus Iraq. Every fixture in the top 10 achieved Google's "Breakout" status, indicating search interest rose by more than 5,000% compared with the previous measurement period.

Google Trends' Rising Queries measures the fastest-growing searches rather than the highest total search volume. A "Breakout" label is assigned when search interest increases by more than 5,000%, highlighting topics experiencing exceptional spikes in public attention.

The rankings underscore the global appeal of traditional football powerhouses such as Brazil, Portugal and France, while also showing that matches involving emerging football nations can capture worldwide curiosity.

Brazil tops the list

Brazil's clash with Haiti led the rankings, reflecting intense international interest in one of football's most successful national teams.

Portugal featured twice in the top 10, with matches against Uzbekistan and DR Congo placing second and sixth, respectively. France's encounter with Iraq ranked third, while Algeria appeared twice through fixtures against Austria and Jordan.

The complete top 10 Rising Queries were:

According to Google Trends, these rankings reflect the fastest-growing searches globally since June 11 rather than the tournament's most-watched or highest-attended matches.

The expanded 2026 FIFA World Cup features 48 teams competing across Canada, Mexico and the United States , making it the largest edition in the tournament's history. The increased number of participating nations has introduced new matchups, helping drive online interest beyond traditional football rivalries.

Indonesia has been ranked the world's friendliest country for local friendliness, according to the Expat Insider 2026 survey by InterNations, with Colombia and Mexico completing the top three, as expatriates highlighted warm welcomes and the ease of building relationships with residents.

The annual survey, one of the world's largest studies of expatriate experiences, asked thousands of people living abroad to rate various aspects of life in their host countries, including how friendly local people are, how easy it is to make local friends and whether expats feel welcome.

Indonesia claimed the top position in the Local Friendliness category, ahead of Colombia, Mexico, the Philippines and Brazil. Completing the top ten were Panama, Oman, Thailand, Kenya and Vietnam, reflecting strong performances across Southeast Asia, Latin America , the Middle East and parts of Africa.

According to InterNations, the Local Friendliness ranking measures expatriates' perceptions of how welcoming residents are toward foreigners and how comfortable newcomers feel interacting with local communities. The rankings are based on personal experiences rather than tourism reviews or public opinion polls.

Indonesia has consistently performed well in recent editions of Expat Insider. Respondents frequently cite the country's welcoming culture, community-oriented society and everyday hospitality as reasons they feel accepted. Many also report that locals are approachable and willing to help newcomers adjust to daily life.

Latin America also stood out in the 2026 results. Colombia ranked second, while Mexico and Brazil placed third and fifth, respectively. Panama finished sixth, reinforcing the region's reputation for openness and strong social connections between expatriates and residents.

Southeast Asia dominated the upper end of the rankings, with Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam all securing places in the top ten. InterNations has previously noted that countries in the region often receive high scores for friendliness, personal interactions and the ease with which expatriates integrate into local communities.

Outside Asia and Latin America, Oman ranked seventh and Kenya ninth. Oman has regularly been recognised by InterNations for its welcoming atmosphere and high quality of life for expatriates, while Kenya's appearance in the top ten highlights positive experiences reported by foreign residents living in East Africa.

InterNations conducts its Expat Insider survey annually, drawing on responses from thousands of expatriates representing numerous nationalities and destinations worldwide. The rankings evaluate countries across multiple dimensions, including quality of life, working abroad, personal finance, ease of settling in and local friendliness.

The Local Friendliness ranking focuses specifically on expatriates' day-to-day interactions with residents rather than broader measures such as safety, infrastructure or economic performance, making it a snapshot of where newcomers feel most welcomed by local communities.

It demonstrates the role of progressive policies that allow refugees and internally displaced people to actively participate, especially in commercial agriculture – feeding into local economies and livelihoods.

“Africa’s displaced communities are not waiting for rescue. They are running businesses, farming land, and moving goods across borders with almost none of the financial infrastructure available to everyone else. That gap is where the opportunity is,” argues Tito Mbathi, the head of partnerships at Amahoro Coalition, the organisation that launched the report in Kampala, last week.

Models such as Uganda’s, which offer refugees access to land and basic social services, matter more now. With aid cuts biting, the need for home-grown, locally mobilised solutions has never been clearer. 

Africa has one of the world’s worst displacement crises: close to 50 million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes and are majorly congested in camps, with limited access to clean drinking water, healthcare and education.

Yet, the rate of internal displacement in major conflict zones is ever surging. For instance, the Sudan civil war alone has displaced over 9 million. The conflicts in Nigeria and DRC account for 3.7 million and nearly 7 million, respectively. These vulnerable groups are increasingly exposed to severe deprivation and human rights violations.

The United Nations estimates that young people constitute at least half of Africa's refugee and internally displaced populations. This is problematic, considering that too many of these youth can't reach their full potential due to their limited access to basic services and economic opportunities.

Most spend their productive years in camps, unable to find meaningful work or build their livelihood. This poses a liability for the youngest continent in the world, whose young people should drive its economic development.

Needless to say, displaced persons, particularly women and children, are more susceptible to violence and trauma-exacerbating situations. The lack of mental health care resulting from budget shortfalls only worsens the predicament.

This explains why many young people in the camps experience severe mental distress and illnesses. Those who can’t recover cannot rebuild their lives. That’s how the continent loses its demographic dividends. The longer people stay in camps, the more their freedoms erode. And with that, their prospects shrink further. 

“The list of the consequences of prolonged encampment is long, and includes material deprivation, psychosocial problems, violence, sexual exploitation, exploitative employment and resorting to negative coping mechanisms. Protracted refugee situations perpetuate poverty and underdevelopment because they inhibit freedom,” analysts observe.

African countries must rethink their humanitarian response by, for instance, empowering displaced people more. This begins with acknowledging that these are full human beings with potential and a right to be supported like everyone else.

Prioritisation goes beyond political statements. It means aligning national budgets and priorities with displaced communities' needs, deepening community engagement and including them in decision-making through appointing their leaders on district planning boards.

Africa’s displaced must be offered capital and other incentives to enable them to start businesses and fully participate in the economies of their host countries. This way, they actively contribute to improving their own livelihoods, cease being seen as a burden, and lessen the country’s reliance on humanitarian aid. Their skills and talents, if well leveraged, could bolster Africa’s leap towards self-reliance.

The article solely represents the views of Simpson Muhwezi, a Ugandan freelance writer and development practitioner.