Sports Stars Streaming

By Dan Holmes Contributor Updated: 07 February 2024

Dan Holmes Contributor

Dan Holmes, a content creator and sports betting enthusiast, brings over a decade of experience to Betting.US. His extensive writing background spans from the internet to prestigious roles at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Dan’s articles, featured on numerous websites, cover various sports, from bowling to disc golf.

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Sports Stars Who Stream

The Democratization of Fame
Athletes Can Share Their Passion for Social Issues and Products
Vini Jr. (@ViniJr)
Neymar Jr. (@NeymarJrReal)
Stephen Curry (@stephcurry)
Juju Smith-Schuster (@JuJu)
Sergio Aguero (@Slakun10)
Blake Snell (@Snellzilla4)
Marshawn Lynch (@MoneyLynch)
Lando Norris (@LandoNorris)
Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage)
References

Athletes in Twitch are attracting millions of followers to that social media platform. Many of them on YouTube are also leveraging that media site to connect with fans. It’s a new era in sports, where the athlete has more control over what they say, where they say it, and how it gets consumed.

Professional athletes on Twitch come from many sports, including baseball, basketball, and more. Those accounts have tens of millions, and possibly even hundreds of millions of subscribers. The popularity of that content helps many of them with their betting on the NFL live.

Fans, through their closer connection with athletes on Twitch and YouTube, the two premier video streaming platforms for athlete creators, can also find great odds from sportsbooks with soccer markets. Many of the top athletes who produce content online, and share a glimpse of their personal lives, are soccer players, or what the rest of the world outside the United States calls “football”.

It’s estimated that there are more than 800 million videos on YouTube ^[1]. On Twitch, which offers live streaming and archived video clips for a short period, there are roughly 8 million users who create videos. The top users have more than 5 million subscribers on Twitch, and some of those are athletes using the social media platform.

The Democratization of Fame

In the era of the Internet and online culture, the symbiotic relationship between athletes and social media has become an integral aspect of both fame and communication. Social media platforms such as Twitch ^[2] serve as powerful tools for high-profile athletes to engage with their fan base, manage their public image, and even influence social and cultural conversations.

One of the significant impacts of athletes using YouTube is the democratization of fame. Platforms like Twitch provide a direct channel for sports stars to connect with their audience without relying on traditional media intermediaries. This direct interaction allows fans to glimpse into the personal lives of their favorite players, fostering a sense of intimacy and connection. Athletes can share moments from their daily lives, behind-the-scenes glimpses of their work, and even express their opinions on various issues.

Social media has also become a platform for thoughtful athletes to curate and control their public image. By carefully selecting the content they share, athletes in the NBA, NHL, MLB, NFL, and other leagues can present a specific narrative and manage their brand. This has led to a more authentic portrayal (and a more immediate one), breaking down the walls of traditional celebrity/athlete mystique.

However, this also comes with challenges, as the constant scrutiny can sometimes result in controversies or misunderstandings. Additionally, social media serves as a promotional tool for sports stars who have an affinity for the online world, allowing them to market their projects directly to their audience.

From film releases and music albums to fashion lines and business ventures, professional and collegiate athletes leverage their social media presence to build anticipation and generate buzz. The immediacy of these platforms enables real-time communication, turning fans into active participants in the promotion of an athlete’s work.

However, the flip side of this immediacy is the potential for backlash. Social media can amplify both positive and negative sentiments, and celebrities often face criticism or controversies. Public disputes, misunderstandings, and controversies can escalate quickly on social media, impacting an athlete’s reputation.

In recent years, activism and social causes have also found a platform through athletes on social media, including Twitch and YouTube. Professional athletes use their influence to raise awareness about various issues, from environmental concerns to social justice movements. This activism adds a new dimension to their public persona and can lead to increased engagement from fans who share similar values, or it can polarize those who disagree.

The relationship between athletes and social media is complex. While these platforms offer unprecedented opportunities for direct engagement, self-promotion, and activism, they also come with challenges, including the potential for miscommunication and the constant scrutiny of the public eye. Athletes are celebrities, and celebrities now have a choice to navigate this digital landscape to varying degrees, shaping their public image and connecting with fans in ways that were not possible before the advent of social media.

Vini Jr. (@ViniJr)

Athletes who stream on YouTube are looking to reach the heights of popularity that Vini Jr. has on the video platform. The soccer icon known as Vinícius Júnior plays for Real Madrid of La Liga and the Brazil national team. At just 23 years of age, Vini Jr. has been on social media as an athlete creator since he was 16. His content is typically related to his personal life within football (soccer), such as these video titles:

Cristiano Ronaldo Sent Me His Cleats!!! – Am I Kicking Harder??? ^[3]
I Got a Tattoo – Did It Hurt?
I Visited the Real Madrid Foundation

Neymar Jr. (@NeymarJrReal)

The forward for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Brazil national team has 4.4 million subscribers to his YouTube channel ^[4]. Like his teammate Vini Jr., Neymar is active on the social media platform, regularly sending out videos for his fans. Here are a few examples of his content:

Making of a Fuji TV Commercial Starring Neymar Jr.
Weekly looks into Neymar’s personal life in and out of soccer
Neymar Pays Tribute to Kobe Bryant

Stephen Curry (@stephcurry)

The four-time NBA champion and multiple-scoring champion has more than 1.7 million subscribers. Known for his long-range shooting and trick shots, there’s nothing tricky about Curry’s YouTube channel. He uses his platform to share his work on social change and issues that matter to him.

Among Curry’s videos, you’ll find interviews with former NBA legends, like Michael Jordan, or a monthly book club discussion. There are talks with world leaders, like a series with former president Barack Obama on leadership and community building. Want more fun? Curry has a video series on pranks he’s played on friends and teammates.

Juju Smith-Schuster (@JuJu)

Between his two channels on Twitch and YouTube, the wide receiver for the Patriots has 1,7 million subscribers. His content is varied from reaction videos and charity efforts to a look inside training camp.

Sergio Aguero (@Slakun10)

Among the celebrity professional athletes who stream on Twitch, soccer superstar Sergio Aguero ranks first in subscribers. He also has an amazing 4.3 million subscribers on his YouTube channel. A worldwide megastar, Aguero is one of the few athletes on Twitch who uses the stream to regularly conduct Q&A and “podcast like” content. He discusses topics on the pitch and off.

Blake Snell (@Snellzilla4)

Of all the top professional sports leagues in the U.S., Major League Baseball (MLB) has the fewest players on video-sharing platforms, But Snell, the tall, thin, mustachioed pitcher is the most prominent. That’s because the two-time Cy Young Award winner loves video gaming. With 52,000 subscribers on Twitch, Snell has a passionate following.

His bio reads “Professional Athlete of the San Diego Padres! Enjoying the Streaming world with positive vibes and a little bit of skill!! Home is Seattle, WA”. Snell shares streams of his video gaming sessions, and occasionally appears on camera to share his thoughts on various MLB related issues. No word yet whether Snell, who is a free agent, will announce his decision on his Twitch channel.

Marshawn Lynch (@MoneyLynch)

The former running back and Super Bowl champion is still a marketable brand years after he carried the football for the last time. Lynch is an avid gamer with a wicked game room and setup. He loves to play almost any title, which makes “Beast Mode’s” channel diverse. Lynch even invites noted game makers and professional game players on his Twitch stream.

Lando Norris (@LandoNorris)

Navigate your browser to Twitch to see the British, Belgian race car driver from Formula One. His Twitch channel has nearly half a million subscribers, and over at YouTube he has a little more than 1 million. Lando’s videos include:

I created my own Go Kart
I took a camcorder to an F1 race
Driving a 44-year old McLaren F1 car

Trevor Bauer (@BauerOutage)

Controversy sells, whether you like it or not. Few professional athletes have been as controversial as Bauer the last few years. The former Cy Young Award winner ^[5] has been essentially blacklisted from MLB following off-field allegations. But, when he signed a deal with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars for the 2023 season, Bauer did what any video creator would do – he took his camera with him to Asia.

Bauer often posts 3-4 videos per week, focused on his obsessive game preparation and unique methods of training. He also shows a glimpse into Japanese life from the point of view of an American athlete. He has nearly 700,000 subscribers.

References

YouTube Revenue and Growth Statistics (2024), SignHouse, Retrieved January 15, 2024
Twitch (service), Wikipedia, Retrieved January 15, 2024
Jr. Vini, (October 9, 2020), 50 stunning Olympic moments No44: Carl Lewis’s four golds in 1984, Vini Jr. YouTube Channel, Retrieved January 15, 2024
Neymar Jr YouTube Channel, YouTube, Retrieved January 15, 2024
Sheldon, Mark, (November 12, 2020), Bauer wins Reds’ first Cy Young Award, The Official Site of Major League Baseball, Retrieved January 15, 2024