After Celtic draw, Scots ask Google: “Where is Kazakhstan?”
Tengrinews.kz – A Champions League match in Glasgow has unexpectedly turned Kazakhstan into one of the hottest topics on Google in the UK. Following Celtic’s 0:0 draw against Almaty’s Kairat on August 21, search activity from Britain spiked, with Scots leading the trend.
According to Google Trends, Scotland showed the highest concentration of queries, followed by Northern Ireland, Wales, and England. Football fans rushed online not only to check the score but also to figure out where Kazakhstan is, whether it is part of Europe, and even if it’s a rich country.
Screenshot from Google Trends
Screenshot from Google Trends
What the UK googled about Kazakhstan
The most popular searches included:
“Is Kazakhstan in Europe”“Kazakhstan Europe”“Where is Kazakhstan”“Capital Kazakhstan”“Astana Kazakhstan”“Map Kazakhstan”“Time in Kazakhstan”“Kazakhstan weather”“Kazakhstan flights”“Kazakhstan league”“Kazakhstan football”
Alongside geography, curiosity spread to culture and economy, with a sharp rise in the unusual query “Is Kazakhstan a rich country” (+3,550%).
Screenshot from Google Trends
Screenshot from Google Trends
Football-driven searches
Naturally, Celtic supporters also flooded Google with football-related queries:
“Celtic Kazakhstan”“Celtic v Kairat Almaty”“Celtic game”“Celtic score”“Kairat Almaty”“Kazakhstan league”“Glasgow to Kazakhstan”
Players also became trending topics. Searches for “Dastan Satpaev,” the 17-year-old Kairat winger who earned a yellow card ruling him out of the return leg, jumped by 400%.
Why the buzz?
The reason behind the spike was the dramatic match at Celtic Park. For the first time in history, Kairat reached the playoff stage of the Champions League. The game featured a disallowed goal by Alexander Martynovich, injuries to both Kazakh goalkeepers, and ten minutes of stoppage time, but no winner — it ended 0:0.
The second leg will take place in Almaty on August 26 at Central Stadium. While the teams prepare, the unexpected side effect of the first clash is clear: Kazakhstan has entered the radar of tens of thousands of Celtic fans, many of whom are now googling its football, geography, and even its wealth.