HITWISE UK WORLD CUP UPDATE

Beckham's Hairstyle and Crouch's Robotic Dance Dominate UK Internet Searches as World Cup Kick-Off Approaches

London, 8^th June 2006

As the start of the World Cup approaches on Friday, UK internet searches are pinpointing the interests of a nation gripped by World Cup fever. UK internet users are not, however, as concerned with the England selection's football skills as much as their dance moves and hairstyles.

The latest analysis from Hitwise, the leading online competitive intelligence service, reveals that the UK's Peter Crouch is close to overtaking Ronaldinho as the most searched-for player in the UK. Searches for Crouch could place the England striker ahead of the Brazilian player by the end of this week. Peter Crouch ranked in third position in the week ending 3^rd June 2006, behind Ronaldinho and Steven Gerrard.

Peter Crouch's rise in UK internet searches is, Hitwise analysis reveals, almost entirely due to the England striker's robotic goal celebration, as seen after his goal against Hungary on 30^th May. The top search terms for Peter Crouch are dominated by searches relating to his dance moves. 'Peter crouch dance', 'peter crouch robot', 'crouch robot' and 'peter crouch robot dance' are four of the top five search terms for the striker.

Beckham's Hairstyle and Rooney's Recovery Arouse Interest

While Crouch mania has gripped the public's  attention, Beckham's next hairstyle has piqued the curiosity of many. Amid growing speculation into the 'look' that David Beckham will sport in the 2006 World Cup, searches for David Beckham focused on the player's hair style, with 'david beckham hairstyles' and 'david beckham hair' among the most popular search terms for the England captain.

And following weeks of anxious speculation about Wayne Rooney's chances of playing with the England squad in Germany, searches for the striker continued to focus on his progress toward recovery. Top search terms for Rooney in the four weeks ending 3^rd June included 'rooney scan', 'rooney latest' and 'wayne rooney news'.

“The factors that drive UK consumers to search for football players are often linked to broader interests than football - such as dancing and hairstyles", said Heather Hopkins, Director of Research for Hitwise UK.“Hitwise search term data for the most popular football players reveals that personality and appearance drive online popularity - as opposed to skill on the pitch."

Searches for 'Big Brother' Eclipse 'World Cup'

Surprisingly, despite the build-up of media attention focusing on the 2006 World Cup, searches for ' big brother' have eclipsed searches for 'world cup' in the UK. With the launch of the new Big Brother 7 series just over 2 weeks ago, searches for the reality TV programme have risen sharply, and ranked fourth among all UK search terms in the four weeks ending 3^rd June 2006, compared to 'world cup', which ranked #182 among all UK search terms.

About Hitwise: 

Hitwise is the leading online competitive intelligence service. Each day, Hitwise measures how more than 25 million internet users interact with over 500,000 websites across 160 industry categories.

By measuring more people, more websites, more often, Hitwise provides marketers with timely and actionable marketing insights on how their online presence compares to competitive websites. Companies use this information to maximize the return on their online investment, in efforts such as affiliate programs, search marketing, online advertising, content development and lead generation.

Hitwise collects internet usage information via a combination of ISP data partnerships and opt-in panels, and complies with local and international privacy legislation as audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers. Founded in 1997, Hitwise is a privately held company, headquartered in New York City and operates in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore.

More information about Hitwise is available at www.hitwise.co.uk

For up to date analysis on online trends, please visit the Hitwise Intelligence-Analyst Weblogs at weblogs.hitwise.com.

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Jannie Cahill

jannie.cahill@hitwise.com

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