Streaming and Gambling: The Role of Streamers and Influencers in Modern Betting

Streaming service Kick.com announced in April that its cross-platform feature was now active. Promised back in February, this feature allows content creators to run streams on multiple platforms from Kick.com simultaneously. The company believes that the feature will help streamers expand their reach with relative ease.

It’s another stepping stone in the continued growth of live streaming. But more than that, it’s another factor influencing—if not disrupting—sports betting evolution. As the platform mainly caters to gambling streamers, it shows that sports betting is no longer confined to sportsbooks and gambling websites. It’s become a form of live entertainment.

That said, how did livestreams evolve to include bets on athletes and sports teams? And why, despite the controversy, are they still attracting viewers in droves? It’s about time to find out what makes streaming and gambling an uncanny match.

The Rise of Stream-Based Sports Gambling

Before Kick.com, Twitch commanded the entire streaming market—almost to the point of monopoly. However, it has since lost the top spot to YouTube in terms of total viewer count and total hours watched, among other metrics.

A series of shakeups over the past several years had challenged the streaming giant’s hold. Perhaps none so much as its controversial change in its Community Guidelines in 2022 to ban most gambling streams. It created a rift in the Twitch’s content creator community, with Tyler Niknam being among the most vocal in opposing the ban.

Niknam, who goes by the handle “Trainwreckstv,” was impacted by the ban because of his mainly gambling content. He then announced plans to build his own platform, a haven for online sports predictions and content called Kick.com.

Data from Streams Charts indicates that Kick.com is the third most used streaming service in the market. As of this writing, it had 306.66 million watched hours and an average viewer count of more than 440,000. It’s also home to nearly 4,000 channels, including Felix “xQc” Lengyel, who also opposed Twitch’s ban.

Streams Charts also shows that the platform’s average viewer count has been steadily rising since launch. It set an all-time viewer count high of 1.75 million in October 2024, about 80% of which was for WestCol’s boxing stream called Stream Fighters 3. Slowly but surely, the Kick.com streaming culture was developing.

Its success boils down to two key aspects. Aside from enabling gambling streams on the platform, the 5/95 revenue split tremendously favors the streamer. It has since attracted some of the most popular streamers and their massive subscriber bases. In a way, the beneficial terms have contributed to the rise of gambling on livestreams.

But it doesn’t stop there.

Influencer Culture & Brand Sponsorships

Whether within or outside the gambling streaming space, the power of influencers can’t be denied. Since the birth of social media, these individuals have shaped consumer behavior in more ways than one.



The success of influencer marketing in recent years is rooted in the influencer’s ability to be relatable to their followers. Seeing their favorite content creator’s live reaction upon winning or losing real money in, say, a football match passes off as entertainment. Such reactions are, for the most part, hard to fake—if not genuine.

The overwhelming adoration and trust influencers enjoy aren’t lost to brands. Data from the latest Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report forecasts record growth for the global influencer marketing market, from USD$24 billion in 2024 to USD$32.55 billion in 2025. Additionally, 80% of surveyed marketers attest to its effectiveness.

Case in point: Niknam disclosed in a stream that he earned USD$360 million streaming his games on the online casino platform Stake through a partnership. Despite some disputing the figure, the New York Times reported that such lucrative gambling sponsorships led to a spike in interest in gambling content on Twitch.

The partnership with Niknam is only one of several influencer marketing campaigns Stake has managed. No company accrues a total estimated valuation of up to USD$23.5 billion in 2025 without celebrity influence. In Stake’s case:

• Alex Pereira, pro-mixed martial artist
• Sergio Aguero, Premier League hall-of-famer
• Everton, Gillingham and Watford football teams
• Pro racing brothers Pietro and Enzo Fittipaldi
• Drake, Canadian singer and actor

The introduction of Kick.com, backed by Stake’s co-founders, provides an alternative to advertising. In places where Stake isn’t permitted to advertise, the Kick.com brand takes its place. This is evident in Sauber Motorsports’ F1 team, which was renamed Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber in January 2024.

At the moment, influencer marketing is unlikely to fall out of favor. A growing number of people are aspiring to become streamers, some of whom possibly planning to follow in Niknam or Lengyel’s footsteps. Meanwhile, casinos and sports betting will continue to attract a large audience, largely thanks to influencers.

Why Fans Are Tuning In

Gambling streams were somewhat of a niche compared to other streaming content. After all, experiencing the thrill of betting in a round of poker or slots is as easy as heading to the nearest casino. Provided they know their limits, people can keep gambling fun.

Then came COVID-19. Suddenly, people became restricted to their homes to curb the virus’s spread. Brick-and-mortar casinos experienced a massive drop in traffic because of the lockdowns, some of which closed for good. Naturally, sporting events were also just as badly hit.

Meanwhile, people at home sought other means of entertainment, eventually turning to streams. Stream Hatchet reported an upward trend in the total hours of poker and slots watched throughout the COVID years. In fact, 2020 witnessed an 82% increase in total hours watched from 2019, more than during the pandemic.

Gambling streams enjoy the same benefits as any other stream. With the ability to interact with the streamer through live chat, viewers feel like they’re part of the excitement. Adding to the entertainment is the streamer’s real-time betting commentary.

Additionally, as a study by University of British Columbia researchers found, some viewers watch gambling streams to control their gambling cravings. The sight of a streamer betting and winning big stimulates them, while that of suffering huge losses dampens them.

More on This Topic

How streaming platforms like Kick are reshaping online gambling is the result of one thing leading to another. From the need for a less restrictive platform to the pandemic’s lasting effects, influencer betting platforms are now part of modern sports entertainment. Expect this trend to grow moving forward.