Who is Trainwreckstv? Girlfriend, net worth, and more

Over his decade-long streaming career, Tyler “Trainwreckstv” Niknam has dipped his toes into several areas of content creation, which goes a long way in explaining his diverse fanbase. Here’s everything you need to know about Trainwreckstv and his streaming journey to date.
Trainwreckstv is often regarded as the face of Kick, and for good reason. Despite his recent fallout with Stake, his contribution to the platform’s growth is undeniable, something co-founder Ed Craven has openly acknowledged. While many fans know him today as the king of gambling on Stake, it wasn’t always that way.
Like many of the biggest names in streaming, Trainwreckstv had humble beginnings on Twitch.
Who is Trainwreckstv?
| Trainwreckstv’s real name | Tyler Niknam |
|---|---|
| Birthday | 20 December, 1990 |
| Birthplace | Austin, Texas (USA) |
| Girlfriend | Kayla (or @felissetv) |
| Estimated net worth | $40 million+ |
| Followers | Kick: 545k • Twitch: 2.2m |
| Height | 185.42 cm (or 6’1″) |
Trainwreckstv is a popular Kick streamer of Iranian descent. Born in 1990 in Texas, the streamer is 35 years old in 2026.
Trainwreckstv grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona, and went on to graduate from Arizona State University in 2014 with a bachelor’s degree in analytic philosophy. Trainwreckstv grew up playing soccer, which explains his interest in athletic activities like weightlifting, and shooting ranges.
He also owns a Papillon-Chihuahua mix who makes the occasional appearance on his Instagram. According to the streamer, his favorite food of all-time is Ramen.
Trainwreckstv with his dog. Image credit: Trainwreckstv
Most fans know Trainwreckstv from his gambling streams on Kick where he wagers eye-watering amounts that often lead to millions of payouts. The streamer has gained popularity with his IRL streams, gaming content, and collaborations with streamers like Adin Ross, Timothy “TimTheTatman” John Betar, Hasan “Hasanabi” Piker, Pokelawls, and more.
In 2026, the streamer enjoys half a million followers on Kick, and 271k subscribers on YouTube. While Train is no longer as active on Twitch, he still boasts 2.2 million followers on the Amazon-owned streaming platform. On Kick, Trainwreckstv averages 29,000 viewers, which isn’t bad compared to his 28,000 viewers he averaged on Twitch with around 2 million followers.
How did Trainwreckstv start streaming?
Trainwreckstv started streaming in 2015 on Twitch, but he didn’t gain mainstream fame until 2017 when he was banned from Twitch for the first time.
Trainwreckstv’s first ever recorded stream was on June 26, 2015, when he was creating IRL content. At that time, gaming content was more popular among Twitch audiences, which explains Trainwreckstv’s sudden rise in 2016-2017 as he switched to streaming Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. He eventually gained fame among a broader audience by playing Overwatch and Last of Us on stream.
Even then, Trainwreckstv wasn’t exactly the biggest name in streaming. In early 2017, he was still averaging around 600 viewers, according to Sullygnome. That changed after his first ever Twitch ban in late 2017 that came after the streamer went on a misogynistic rant that went viral on YouTube and X (then Twitter).
Why was Trainwreckstv banned on Twitch?
Trainwreckstv’s first Twitch ban came in 2017 when he went on a live rant about female streamers who sexualize themselves for content.
In 2017, hot tub and bathing suit streams were growing on Twitch, largely under the “Just Chatting” category with no dedicated space to separate them from the underage audiences. This was indeed problematic, which was confirmed by Twitch’s decision to introduce a dedicated “Pools, Hot Tubs, and Beaches” category later in 2021.
However, Trainwreckstv’s way of expression was deemed misogynistic by the viewers, likely due to the derogatory language directed at female streamers he accused of exploiting the platform. The language eventually earned him a ban from Twitch.
Trainwreckstv rant
“Now it’s ran by the f*cking goddamn same s**ts that rejected us, the same s**ts that chose the goddamn cool kids over us. The same s**ts that are coming into our community, taking the money, taking the subs, the same way they did back in the day,” Trainwreckstv said on his 2017 stream.
His most recent Twitch ban came on November 9, 2024, with the platform citing “user spam” as the reason. Trainwreckstv was skeptical of that explanation, suggesting his affiliation with Kick may have played a role. He was unbanned three days later, and it was later revealed that he had his Kick link in his Twitch bio, which many believe was the real trigger for the ban.
In any case, Trainwreckstv had already left Twitch for Kick, making the move official in December 2022.
How rich is Trainwreckstv?
According to Trainwreckstv, he’s the highest-paid streamer on Kick. While some estimates place his net worth as high as $350 million, that figure is widely considered an exaggeration. Still, Trainwreckstv has accumulated significant wealth over the course of his career.
The $350 million figure comes from the statement Trainwreckstv made back in 2022. During a stream, he revealed that he’s being paid $350 million by a brand to gamble for 16-months. Whether that deal ever renewed or not remains anyone’s guess, but his Kick channel has grown a lot since.
A large chunk of Trainwreckstv’s income comes from his Kick gambling streams. His Stake sponsorship alone reportedly started at $1 million per month before scaling to as much as $22.5 million per month at its peak. On top of that, he has recorded some staggering individual wins, including a $37.5 million payout on Hex Appeal in July 2025.
Beyond gambling, his income from Kick is considered by many to be his most significant source of wealth, with estimates placing his overall net worth somewhere between $30 million and $40 million as of 2026. However, the exact figures remain unknown given that the details of his Kick deal have never been made public.
Who is Trainwreckstv dating?
In 2026, Trainwreckstv is dating his long-term girlfriend Kayla.
Trainwreckstv has been in a long-term relationship with Kayla, known online as FelisseTV, who was formerly a Twitch streamer. The two have been together for over eight years and have largely kept their relationship out of the spotlight, with neither making it a focal point of their public personas.
Kayla has consistently engaged with Trainwreckstv’s posts on X, and her profile header suggests the two are still together.
Does Trainwreckstv own Stake?
Trainwreckstv likes to call himself the Kick co-founder, but this hasn’t been confirmed by Ed Craven or other Kick officials.
Actual Kick co-founder Ed Craven has publicly credited Trainwreckstv for the role he played in the platform’s early development. Beyond general advice, the streamer served in a formal advisory capacity, with his input said to have been instrumental in shaping Kick’s headline 95-5 revenue split, the policy that convinced many of Twitch’s biggest names to make the switch.
Despite his well-documented involvement, the exact nature of Trainwreckstv’s financial stake in Kick remains unclear. It’s possible that his claim to co-founder status reflects his intellectual contribution to the platform’s early development rather than a formal ownership position. However, it’s unknown whether Train has equity in Kick as a co-founder.
Does Trainwreckstv use his own money in gambling?
While there’s really no way to verify whether a gambling streamer is legit, Trainwreckstv’s realistic losses do suggest that he likely uses real money to gamble.
Trainwreckstv recently revealed losing up to $10 million in just two days, later confirming he was operating at an 85% RTP after wagering hundreds of millions.
Trainwreckstv losing streak
Losses of that magnitude are rarely associated with streamers using fake balances. He did break his losing streak with a recent historic win on Valhalla 1000, but it’s worth noting that the win came after a random suggestion from a viewer to try out the slot.
Trainwreckstv Big Wins on Online Slots:
| # | #Streamer | Winning | Game | Operator | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
While nothing can be confirmed outright, his track record paints a picture that is far more consistent with someone gambling with real funds than most of his peers, and he remains one of the industry’s most colorful creators.
Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.
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