Will Twitch ban gambling streams following more controversy?

Will Twitch ban gambling? That’s a question many are asking after controversies continue to pile up and gain visibility on the streaming platform.

Gambling has become a huge presence on Twitch, with many of the platform’s most popular streamers dedicating entire live broadcasts to wagering large amounts of cash on sponsoring gambling sites. The growing category on Twitch is also a huge source of controversy, with the streaming community concerned about the influence these popular streamers have on their predominantly young audience.

With all of the controversy surrounding gambling, is Twitch going to ban it from the streaming platform?

Is gambling allowed on Twitch?

Many top streamers have become immersed in the world of gambling, usually due to a sponsorship with a gambling company. This includes streamers Adin Ross and Felix “xQc” Lengyel, who recently admitted to wagering over $600K on digital slots. Even xQc’s own father has become concerned with the extreme amount of gambling xQc has done.

Imane “Pokimane” Anys and Amouranth are among the popular streamers have expressed distaste for gambling on Twitch.

““Just because other things that are less bad are legal [on Twitch], that means we should allow worse things? That is such terrible logic for a productive society. If anything, it should be the other way around. We should say ‘f— gamba’ and ‘f— some of these microtransactions that take advantage of people,’” Pokimane said.

Despite the amount of gambling on Twitch, it was mostly discussed only within the confines of the streaming community until more recently. Mainstream news outlet Bloomberg recently published a report on gambling, stating it’s the seventh-most watched category on Twitch.

New: Some Twitch viewers say they're hooked on crypto gambling after watching their favorite streamers bet live on Twitch as part of lucrative sponsorship deals. One fan who says he became addicted declared bankruptcy. Our story: https://t.co/iQtZTTU1so

— Cecilia D'Anastasio (@cecianasta) August 4, 2022

Now that gambling has become a more heavily discussed topic, some in the streaming community wonder if bad press will finally convince Twitch to do something about it. In the Bloomberg report, a Twitch spokesperson said the company is “currently in the midst” of studying gambling behaviors on the platform and potential actions it may take.

So far, direct links to gambling sites are not allowed to be promoted through Twitch streams on the platform. But Twitch is reportedly looking at other ways to protect its community of viewers from potential harm. This means that Twitch may be looking to control the gambling category more strictly in the future, but so far there’s nothing specific that has been publicly expressed.