New Delhi, May 30 -- New Zealand defender Tim Payne has become an unlikely soccer superstar after an influencer from Argentina called on his followers to unite and make the little-known 32-year-old Payne a "hero" of the upcoming World Cup.

El Scarso, a soccer influencer also known as Valen Scarsini, identified Payne as the least-known player at the World Cup in Canada, the United States and Mexico based on his small social media following.

Payne had around 4,700 followers on Instagram earlier this week. After being singled out by El Scarso that number has risen at a rate of almost 1,000 per minute to more than a million by Friday.

Payne's following is now six times greater than New Zealand's captain and best-known player, Nottingham Fo...