Two-way movement
It is a valid question to wonder if streaming is shifting away from gambling feeds in light of Twitch’s 2022 decision to change its policies on what gambling feeds it would allow. However, that is only half of the question. The other way to look at the world of gambling and streaming is to ask if gambling is moving into streaming. Judging by the sheer volume of online video shares that are branded Stake.com, you have to reflect that there is an inextricable link between the two forms of entertainment.
On closer inspection, what is apparent is that what Twitch did was to prohibit gambling content originating from sites that were not licensed in the US or other jurisdictions that provided “sufficient consumer protection”. The Amazon-streaming site banned users from streaming themselves playing slots, roulette, or dice games from unlicensed sites, but licensed sites and sports gambling were not affected.
Streaming illegal sites
The streaming platforms are always trying to stay one step ahead of the game and avoid their customers from getting caught up by scammers, but it is a constant battle. In 2021, a Texan with the moniker Trainwrecks was hitting the slots on online cryptocurrency casino Stake.com and live-streaming to audiences of around 25,000 at a time. On occasions, he was seen to be winning as much as $400,000 in crypto, and he never went broke. It was seemingly a brilliant way to monetize his stream. While the site was not legal in the US, he circumvented this restriction, as anyone would, by using a VPN and encouraging his followers to do the same.
New rules
Following on from Twitch’s lead, Kick introduced new gambling broadcast rules. As of February 12025, streamers can only stream themselves playing at online casinos that meet specific requirements. However, the streaming platforms know that they have to approach this very carefully; they want to look after their customers, but they do not want to kill the proverbial golden goose. Online gambling is incredibly important to the streaming platforms - gambling streamers are the third most popular content creators on Kick, shortly behind those in the “Just Chatting’ and ‘IRL’ sectors. The concern is that the streams are viewed by vast numbers of viewers who are under the legal age to gamble.
Kick’s news rules state:
From February 1, 2025, gambling-related content can only be streamed from gambling sites that use ID to verify that users are 18+.
The site claims that the rules aim to limit the promotion of casinos operating outside the control of regulators and thereby prevent young viewers from being exposed to illegal gambling. However, it does nothing to stop young viewers from watching legal gambling, and there are plenty of such feeds on many streaming sites.
How to distinguish what is and is not legal
So, how does anyone know if they are playing on sites that Kick and Twitch would allow? Well, for anyone in the US, the starting point is that the streamer needs to reside in a state that allows online gambling. Currently, there are only six such states: New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
However, there are numerous sites that claim to be legal, and many people mistakenly believe they are playing on regulated sites when, in fact, they are not. In fact, a recent Ipsos poll in Canada found that while only 10% of Albertans were playing exclusively on regulated sites, more than 50% believed the sites they were playing on were legal. With rogue operators setting up clones of reputable ones, it can often be difficult to distinguish between the two.
Fortunately, help is at hand. As well as checking for yourself that any site you are following has the correct licenses, there is another way to find the most reputable sites by using the services provided by online casino review sites. This is particularly important for players who want to try out exciting new online casino sites without wasting time or falling foul of the law. An excellent review site like Casino.org does the hard work for you. With comprehensive lists of everything on offer, all the casinos reviewed are checked by Casino.org, so that players can just get on with playing or streaming (or both).
Do the Kick changes really restrict gambling?
Since its launch, Kick has been linked to gambling; after all, it was founded by the same people who set up cryptocurrency online casino, Stake.com. With partnerships with popular streamers like Adin Ross and xQc, it has become a popular alternative to Twitch, which has very restrictive policies on promoting gambling.
On the surface, Kick’s policy change appears to be a step towards promoting responsible gambling, but some people argue that the real aim is to promote Stake.com over its rivals. By linking the platform to a casino with links to its founders, it is potentially suppressing coverage of any competition.
Stake operates under a Curacao license and is incredibly popular with streamers in the slots channel. The site has spent heavily on marketing and had a headline shirt sponsorship with English Premier League Club, Everton, but ran into some trouble with that earlier in the year. The platform also has links with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. However, it is probably most famous right now for its association with rapper Drake, who is an ambassador for the company, and he live streams outrageous gambles on the platform.
The streamer Xposed suggests that all of the changes are there to serve business interests, rather than protect young viewers. In a post on X, he claimed that all the rule changes had done was to show that Stake only wants to promote their product on the platform. He argued that streamers showing content from other websites are having their views suppressed.
Streaming live sport with added involvement
It could be argued that rather than streaming moving away from gambling, gambling is moving into streaming. This is very true when you think about watching live sport. Many sports betting platforms offer live streaming services to people with an account. While casino gambling is only available in a handful of US states, legal sports betting is far more widespread. Many sites allow people to watch an event for a minimal bet, thus avoiding costly subscriptions and giving them a stake in the outcome. Rather than switching between two platforms, the betting and the sport are all served up in one package.