Meet freestyle footballer Muhammed Riswan, one of the two Indian creators to win the Instagram Rings 2026

Muhammed Riswan

Muhammed Riswan’s relationship with football began as a kid in Areekode, Malappuram, playing in district tournaments. However, a fractured arm when he was a teenager forced him to take a break from the field. But today, he does freestyle football (the art of performing tricks with a football), creates content, and is one of two Indian creators to win the Instagram Rings creator awards this year.

Instagram announced the 25 award winners on Thursday (October 29). A 14-member jury, including rapper A$AP Rocky, fashion mogul Donatella Versace, author-content creator Jack Edwards and Chef Vikas Khanna, selected this year’s awardees.

The other Indian recipient is Bhavitha Mandava, a fashion creator. Norwegian footballer Erling Haaland and US-based content creator Kareem Rahma are among the winners at the second edition of Rings.

“It was difficult for me to leave the sport. Even though the pain made me want to leave football, once I came home from the hospital, I started kicking the ball around and began practising tricks with it. That’s how I discovered freestyle football,” says Riswan.

Riswan, who currently has over 2.7 million followers on Instagram, says, “It is a huge achievement for me, and it gives me great joy. I want to bring fame to Keralam with my skills, and to be one of the 25 people in the list is a start.”

The 23-year-old creator shot to fame in November 2023 after he shot a Reel at the Keralamkundu waterfall in Malappuram, kicking a football that arched into the falls, and it went viral. With over 600 million views and counting, the Reel won the Guinness World Records for the most-viewed ever in January 2024.

“Since I am a freestyler, I travel everywhere with the ball. I did the same when I visited the waterfalls that day. Something about the location made me shoot the ball into the chasm, where the water was flowing down. The video crossed 100 million views on the first day,” recalls Riswan, who began practising freestyling by watching videos on YouTube until he began doing tricks on his own.

“That Reel changed my life. After it went viral, people started recognising me and I began getting called for promotional gigs and other events. I am still getting mentioned in stories and comments because of that video. In fact, I built my house from the money I earned from it,” he adds.

The creator believes success rides on equipping yourself with the required skills and showcasing them. “Once I started putting myself out there, I got the encouragement needed to do freestyling as a profession. Everyone aspires to do a job they like, and it makes me happy to lead my life this way.”

In 2025, the Argentine football team invited Riswan to watch Lionel Messi’s home game at Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. “He is my favourite player, and even though it was a difficult process to get the visa, once we got there, it was a really fun experience,” says Riswan.

However, he regrets not being able to meet and interact with the legend. “Maybe next time, I will be able to spend more time with him. I also want to meet Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar.”

Kerala / The Hindu MetroPlus / Football / award and prize