casino streamers

Before we look at how casino streaming started, it’s important to put things into a wider context. The basic reason casino streamers are so popular today is the same reason other streamers are - engagement. Because viewers can interact with streamers, they develop strong relationships. 

However, when it comes to casino streaming specifically, there is another factor that makes it extremely compelling to watch; the thrills. When a streamer wins or loses, their viewers actually feel the same emotions as the streamer (though, to a lesser degree, of course). Don’t believe us? Head over to a popular casino streamer and see what happens when they land a big win.

Although most people hadn’t really heard of Twitch until 2015/16, it actually launched way back in 2011 as a spin-off of the streaming platform Justin.tv. But, whereas Justin.tv had been a general interest streaming site, Twitch was primarily focused on gaming. 

Of course, this was predominantly video gaming, and most streams were just of people playing games. However, a thriving skin betting scene also emerged. This was where players would bet on the outcomes of games, like the hugely popular CS:GO, with skins and weapons. So, Twitch was already home to gambling of sorts, and it wasn’t long before people started broadcasting streams of themselves playing online casino video slots, roulette, blackjack, poker, and other traditional gambling games.  

At around the same time, online casinos were seeing explosive growth, driven by the proliferation of affordable smartphones and 4G mobile internet. If you were in the UK or Europe during those years, you’ll probably remember that an online gambling site sponsored every other sports team, and every commercial break on TV featured at least one gambling ad.

Back then, most countries still didn’t have gambling regulations, and even those that did, like the UK, weren’t really geared up for the tsunami of new online casinos and sportsbooks. You could say it was something of a Wild West situation. And so, it was against this chaotic backdrop that Twitch casino streamers like Roshtein and CasinoDaddy emerged. 

At the same time, marketing executives at online casinos were also facing a problem. They knew they had to harness the power of social media, but platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube had stringent rules about gambling content, and what was allowed just didn’t convert very well. The rapidly growing Twitch, with its engaging live broadcasts and tolerance of gambling, was just too promising to ignore.

Before long, top casino streamers were signing increasingly lucrative affiliate deals with casino operators, and by 2018, the popularity of casino streams on Twitch was such that a specific casino gaming category was introduced. But, even so, casino content made up only a small fraction of Twitch streams and was pretty much left to ‘fly under the radar’ without any official oversight.

For a few years, popular Twitch casino streamers were able to make serious money by sending traffic directly from their streams to online casinos. This kind of affiliate marketing is a cornerstone of the online casino, e-commerce, financial, and many other sectors. Usually, there is nothing dodgy about it - affiliates simply market a product, publish a referral link, and if someone signs up or buys, they will get a commission. 

The problem is that while affiliates on most platforms were governed by strict rules and standards, many Twitch casino streamers seemed to be operating with impunity. Overall, the sheer sums of money supposedly being gambled and won on many casino live streams seemed implausible. 

Some started to suspect that certain casino streamers weren’t actually playing with their own, or even real, money at all. And we now know that some streamers had made lucrative deals with casinos where they gambled with fake funds to trick viewers into believing it was easy to win. These fake casino streamers quickly started to give the overall casino streaming community a bad name.

But, still, the top casino streamers were raking in the subscribers and the money. For example, Tyler “Trainwrecks” Niknam was promoting a Curaçao-licensed casino and had gathered an incredible 1.5m subscribers.

In 2021, everything changed for Twitch casino streamers. The drama started when a popular British CS:GO streamer known as ItsSliker admitted to conning other streamers out of around $200,000 to fund his gambling habit. This prompted several high-profile streamers like Pokimaine and MizKif to demand transparency from Twitch regarding the volume of gambling on the platform. 

To no one’s surprise, Twitch management revealed they had been generating huge amounts of revenue from casino and other gambling streams. So, now everyone knew why they’d been so ‘hands-off’ when it came to Twitch casino streamers. And, with gambling streams now under intense scrutiny, details of dodgy deals and fake casino streamers using pretend balances started to emerge.

In addition to a backlash from anti-gambling users on the platform, the mainstream media, politicians, and pressure groups were getting involved. One European country, Slovakia, even went as far as banning Twitch completely for breaching advertising standards. Although Twitch clearly didn’t want to cut off one of its best revenue sources, the potential liability was becoming too much for parent company Amazon.

In August 2021, Twitch introduced a complete ban on content featuring gambling referral codes and links - tools that were commonly used by casino streams on the platform. Then, in 2022, Twitch announced a new policy for gambling content on the platform. It would prohibit streams of gambling sites featuring slots, roulette, or dice games that weren’t licensed in the US or “other jurisdictions that provide sufficient consumer protection.”

Some of the world’s biggest online casino sites were specifically banned by Twitch, including Stake.com, Roobet.com, Rollbit.com, and Duelbits.com. However, the platform did announce it would continue to allow websites focused on sports betting, fantasy sports, and poker.

Although the controversy at Twitch undoubtedly cast online casino streamers in a bad light, it actually did everyone a favour. After the policy changes, the top casino streamers, who had millions of subscribers, faced a choice - clean up their acts or find a new platform. Of course, no other gaming-focused streaming platform has anything like the reach of Twitch, so it was a no-brainer. Likewise, casinos and sportsbooks realised they would need to ensure any streamers they associated with were acting with integrity and complying with all applicable regulations. 

The crisis even spurred some gaming companies to develop their own proprietary casino streaming platforms. Today, players can watch genuine live casino streamers play on platforms like WeSpin at ComeOn casino or Livespins at Metaspins. Because these platforms have been developed specifically for gaming and are run by licensed casinos, they also allow players to pool bets and engage in other exciting ways that weren’t possible at Twitch.

So, you’re probably wondering how exactly online casino streamers make money. Well, in the early days, the strategy was quite simple. Just like other online affiliate marketing, from holidays and insurance to electronics and fashion, streamers used referral links and codes. Whenever someone clicked a link or used a code to sign up and deposit at a casino, the streamer would get a commission. 

But, although it was simple, it wasn’t easy. To make any real revenue, you need a lot of subscribers. After all, only a tiny fraction of them will use the links or codes. This puts a lot of pressure on casino streamers to stand out and attract subscribers. Of course, once you were a top casino streamer, you could make bespoke deals directly with casino operators, but you had to become a top streamer first. This is why so many of the early online casino streamers were willing to do anything, including lie, to make themselves look successful. After all, people tend to follow winners.

Post 2021, the business model for Twitch casino streamers has changed dramatically. They can’t use the normal affiliate tools, like links and codes, and can no longer show content from many casinos. Needless to say, it is now more difficult to make money as a Twitch casino streamer. Today, streamers predominantly concentrate on building a valuable personal brand and making sponsorship deals with casinos.

Sure, depending on the specific platform’s rules, they can still mention things like “check out the Bonus Buy Slots at X casino”, but they probably won’t use a direct link. On the one hand, it means it is much harder to build a meaningful income in the first place, but on the other hand, if you can do it, it is more sustainable. 

Of course, some of the luckier online casino streamers have also made a fair bit of cash by simply winning money by gambling (or, so they say, anyway). However, we wouldn’t recommend counting on winning money as a business model if you’re planning to give casino streaming a try!

Today, many online casinos use streaming as part of their marketing strategies. Indeed, as the space cleaned itself up, it allowed regulated and licensed casinos to enter the space. However, one of the driving forces behind casino streaming has always been crypto casinos. This makes sense, considering cryptocurrency is widely used and understood by the same age group that tends to be most involved with streaming.

Some of the casinos most commonly used by streamers:

• BC.Game
• Cloudbet
• Stake.com
• Metaspins
• Lucky Block

This question is very difficult because streamers don’t generally tell their subscribers. What we can say, though, is that some top casino streamers have made a lot of money - as in millions of dollars, but it all depends on how popular they are and what kind of deals they have negotiated with casino operators. 

However, like with Instagram and other social media influencers (especially of the crypto variety), just because a streamer gives the impression they are absurdly wealthy doesn’t mean they actually are. The ‘fake it til you make it’ strategy is still very common in this space, and don’t believe the sites that tell you it’s possible to earn millions within months by becoming a casino streamer with some affiliate program. Becoming a top casino streamer takes commitment, time, and a lot of luck.

As mentioned earlier, one of the first high-profile Twitch casino streamers was Roshtein (real name Ishmael Swartz). An eccentric, long-haired Swede who always wears his signature hat, Roshtein rose to prominence as a streamer in 2016. Through a combination of his entertaining personality and big bets, he attracted millions of followers.

Since then, he’s earned something of a controversial reputation and was even briefly banned from Twitch in August 2021 - during the messy introduction of the platform’s new policies. Though he was back on Twitch within days, Roshtein has since migrated to Kick.com - clearly displeased with the new Twitch gambling policies. 

In terms of making money, Roshtein, who incidentally now lives in the gambling hub of Malta, seems to have done very well for himself. His biggest win was nearly $19 million in Wanted Dear or a Wild, and his estimated net worth is somewhere in the region of $33 million. He even partnered with Slovenia-based game developer GameArt to launch his own slot game called Rosh - Immortality Cube.

But, like most things in the world of casino streaming, Roshtein is surrounded by controversy. Some question if his huge wins were real and if he gambles with his own money or fake funds provided by casinos. But whether he is a real or fake casino streamer, one thing is for sure, he’s very popular.

The UK casino streaming scene was once bustling, with numerous channels on YouTube and Twitch showcasing the best and newest online slots to be released. As more regulation slowly crept into this sector of iGaming, some of the smaller channels began to drop off, but there are still some big channels with thousands of subscribers pumping out the content every week, with some of the more well-known players in the industry being:

• The Bandit Slots
• Chipmonkz Slots
• Gamblers Den
• Stop and Step
• Fruity Slots 

Today, Twitch still dominates the casino streaming space. Streamers like Silizlive, Buxexawinbr, and Amorinhuudsson can rack up 70,000+ hours watched in a normal week. Illustrating the dominance of Twitch, at the time of writing, the top 40 most-watched virtual casino streamers for the last seven days were all using Twitch (Streamscharts.com, November 2023). 

Top casino streaming platforms in 2023:

• Twitch
• YouTube
• Kick
• Trovo

So, despite the departure of high-profile veteran online casino streamers like Roshtein, Twitch still dominates the space and looks set to do so for the foreseeable future. Of course, in the world of social media and streaming platforms, things can change quickly, and the next big thing could be just around the corner. 

But, even if another platform wins the favour of the world’s top casino streamers, things are unlikely to return to the Wild West days. Today’s internet is an increasingly regulated space in general, and the rules surrounding gambling marketing are also getting tighter in many jurisdictions. So, when it comes to the dedicated gambling streaming platforms, although they do have a future integrated into casinos, it is doubtful they will ever have the reach to go mainstream. Also, let’s not forget the potential for AI-based virtual casino streamers. Does the future actually belong to them? Interesting times ahead, that's for sure.

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