TL;DRGoogle says Search hit its highest usage ever, with the most queries per second in its ~28-year history, right after Argentina’s comeback World Cup win over Egypt on Tuesday. The company announced the record without releasing any figures or methodology. The milestone lands as Google remakes Search around AI amid questions about zero-click answers and slipping share.
Google Search recorded its highest usage ever this week, driven by a World Cup goal. The company says the most queries per second in Search’s near-28-year history landed right after Argentina’s winning goal, a spokesperson told CNBC.
The spike followed Argentina’s comeback victory over Egypt in the knockout rounds on Tuesday, with Lionel Messi at the centre of it. As fans reached for their phones, the surge briefly outstripped every previous peak in the service’s history.
Google said its most-searched query afterwards was simply “argentina vs egypt”. Others included how many World Cup goals Messi has scored and whether this is his last tournament.
One detail is missing, though: any actual figures. Google did not release the queries-per-second number or explain how it measured the record, so the claim rests on the company’s word.
