Streaming most forms of entertainment is now a standard practice for many people. Very few consumers buy physical copies of either music or movies these days, preferring to watch and listen to Netflix and other streaming providers.
That is becoming the case with games as well. There are people who livestream their gaming to audiences and make a very good living at it. Indeed, this is considered to be an emerging trend and a growing market.
Given that overall growth, it is no surprise that some of those game streamers are poker players. The tense drama of poker lends itself naturally to the medium, keeping viewers on the edges of their seats.
This article will look at the most popular out of the numerous poker streamers.
Jefferson Santos
This Portuguese player may not be a headline star of the poker circuit, but he has earned a total of more than $50,000 from tournament play during his career. His primary success is proving to be as a live poker streamer, though.
He streams under the name ‘jeffaocs’ and has gained a total of 337 subscribers to his channel on the platform Twitch. That has placed him at the forefront of the new generation of poker streamers on the site, although it is a competitive sector, and the top streamers change frequently.
Like most hit streamers, his success is down to having a strong personality and the ability to provide those watching him play a poker game online with useful tips on improving their play as well as entertainment.
Arlie Shaban
Shaban is a player who has been poker streaming for much longer. That is reflected in the almost 53,000 subscribers that his channel has. He also benefits from being Canadian, which means he does not encounter the language barrier that a rival like Santos has to contend with.
Before becoming a successful streamer, Shaban was a contestant in Big Brother Canada 2. This meant that he was already known to people when he launched his poker streaming channel six years ago.
None of that should detract from his success, though. Starting out by playing low-stakes games, Shaban grew his channel with a mammoth 1,000-hour poker stream across 125 days. This climaxed with a continuous 43-hour poker session.
He is now a Poker Stars Ambassador, and his combination of poker and humor is a must-watch.
Ben Spragg
Known to his 150,000 Twitch followers as ‘Spraggy’, this player is the biggest poker streamer in the UK. He began his professional career playing cash games before graduating to tournaments, and it was at that time that he also kick-started his streaming channel.
Fans like him because he plays both low and high-stakes tournaments, so he is able to provide advice and tips for players, whatever league they are in. He also has a high-profile marriage to Marle Spragg that has helped to make his streams a hit with viewers in a field where there is lots of competition for eyeballs.
Lex Veldhuis
Veldhuis hails from Norway and has built a huge following on Twitch. More than 615,000 people tune in to watch his live streams of both tournament and cash game play. That easily places him among the top streamers.
Unlike Shaban and Spragg, he does not really sprinkle his streams with wacky moments, but his appeal lies elsewhere. This is one of the best streams to watch if you want to get solid advice on live casino poker, which a lot of people do.
That is not to suggest that Veldhuis is dry on camera, though. He has a sharp wit, but his humor is more low-key than some of his rivals.
Fintan Hand
Fintan Hand certainly has an appropriate name for a professional poker player, and he is also an excellent streamer. The Irishman has a Twitch channel called ‘easywithaces’ where he live streams his play in different low and high-stakes poker tournaments.
This has earned him a subscriber base of more than 125,000 people, so he is clearly doing something right. Like others who have made a go of streaming, one reason for his success is that he produces several streams every week. With so much competition, poker players must feed their audiences a constant flow of new content.
Another factor that has helped Hand rise to the top in the world of poker streaming is his personality. He is a charming presence in front of the camera and brings lots of Celtic humor to his streams. Coupled with genuine skills at the table, it has made him essential viewing for fans of the game.
Poker is on the rise, and live poker streams are a big part of that. They let people learn from the best players.
