The three most searched terms on Google UK this year were related to football, with only one reference to Covid in the top 10.

“Euros”, “Premier League” and “Christian Eriksen” – the Danish player who suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch – were the top three, with “Vaccino Covid” fourth.

Covid had dominated the rankings last year.

Google News Labs chief Matt Cooke said the annual list revealed “insights into the nation’s zeitgeist.”

“During a year of unpredictability, we have turned to sports, entertainment, gardening, recipes and travel in the UK to overcome some of the most frustrating and difficult times,” he added.

The 10 best terms in the UK for 2021

The world ranking was also dominated by sport:

Questions about used and sustainability have increased, as have searches for new trends such as nail art and iced coffee recipes.

And once again, the UK has proven to be a nation of gardeners and do-it-yourselfers, with “Garden Ideas” and “How to Unlock a Bathroom” appearing on the lists.

However, Covid has never been out of people’s minds, with six of the top 10 searches starting with “When” related to blockages.

Top 10 searches starting with “When”

The pandemic also dominated the travel list, with people searching for “UK Travel Update”, “PCR Test for Travel”, “Travel Green List” and “Caravan Holidays”.

Former health secretary Matt Hancock tops the list of politicians, followed by Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Greta Thunberg.

Jackie Weaver, made famous by her appearance at a Zoom meeting of the local parish council, came in at number eight.

Netflix hits Squid Game and Bridgerton tops the list for TV, with Dune, Black Widow and Eternals being the most searched movies.

Questions about the outage that hit Facebook and WhatsApp in October tops the list of most searched questions, with those about the block, euros, COP26 and, perhaps more strangely, “Where does the vanilla flavor come from?” also in the top 10.

And the perennial question of whether a Jaffa Cake is a cake or a cookie made it into the “Or search” list, along with spelling questions like “Hack me or bear with me?” and “Boyfriend or girlfriend?”