Israel, Matthew Perry and state voucher this year among the most popular Belgian search terms on Google | Internet

In 2022, it was still the war in Ukraine that dominated the search results. In the news category, however, this made way for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The recent attack in Brussels on October 16, in which two Swedes were killed, the Indian moon mission Chandrayaan-3 and the launch of the government bond also made the top 5.

Aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who was released in May after 455 days of captivity in Iran, is one of the most sought-after people in Belgium this year. He represents former ‘VRT’ radio presenter Sven Pichal, who is suspected of possessing and sharing images of sexual abuse of minors, and the Flemish actor Boris Van Severen.

Among sports personalities, first place goes to Luca Brecel, the Belgian who became world snooker champion in May, just ahead of cyclist Lotte Kopecky, who became world road cycling champion. English footballer David Beckham, who launched a series on Netflix this year, completes the stage.

The Tour de France, Roland Garros, the Rugby World Cup and the Women’s World Cup top the list for most searches for sporting events.

The film ‘Oppenheimer’, which was released this summer, takes first place in the category of films, series and TV shows. Its biggest rival this summer, ‘Barbie’, finished in third place, after the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. The winner of that competition, Loreen from Sweden, is among the most sought-after musical artists in Belgium this year. International stars Beyoncé and Harry Styles, who made a stopover in our country during their respective world tours, also appear in the ranking.

Actor Matthew Perry, known for his role as Chandler in the series ‘Friends’, was the most wanted deceased this year. Perry passed away unexpectedly in October this year.

Finally, one of the most frequently asked questions to the search engine was about the government bonds that were launched last summer.