Deputy Editor
The World Series of Poker unveiled a vlogger rewards program that offers serious incentives for players who can create highly trafficked content revolving around the WSOP.
Under the program, top content creators could receive more than $30,000 worth of tournament entries and free hotel stays, among other perks.
The incentives continue GGPoker’s push to market the game and its products through third-party content creators. GGPoker, which acquired the WSOP in 2024, recently announced a special Streamer Mode that rewards online players who create content while playing on GG.
What Rewards Can Vloggers Reap Through The WSOP?
The WSOP is using a tiered system to reward qualified, approved vloggers. The system begins at 5,000 subscribers. Four tiers exist, with the top tier of rewards requiring a staggering 250,000 subs.
Applicants must meet certain volume, conduct, and content requirements as well:
- Three episodes of at least 30 minutes within a month of an event
- No other sponsorships, including on clothing
- At least 60% of channel’s content must be poker-related
- Vlogger must be at least 18 years old
Here’s how the incentives for each tier break down:
| 5,000-25,000 Subs | 25,000-100,000 Subs | 100,000-250,000 Subs | 250,000+ Subs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tournament Tickets | Up to $3,000 in WSOPC tickets per stop | Depends on subscriber count | Up to $30,000 in WSOPC/WSOP tickets per stop | Custom yearly package |
| Accommodation | N/A | Complimentary hotel | Complimentary hotel suite | Custom |
| Incentive Scheme Cash Payouts | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Creative Support | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Exclusivity Requirement | No | No | No | Yes |
The WSOP left the highest tier vaguely-defined. Since that tier is reserved for exclusive sponsored channels, the rewards are left to be negotiated between the content creator and the WSOP.
The cash payouts available for content creators with 25,000 or more subscribers fall into two tiers: $5,000 if a video gets at least 1 million views in a month, and $10,000 if it gets at least 2.5 million.
Every content creator who successfully applies will also receive a WSOP media pass, ensuring they can create their vlogs without violating event or venue regulations.
WSOP Sets Huge Channel, Viewership Targets
The WSOP’s vlogger incentive program diverges significantly from GGPoker’s Streamer Mode in that it sets volume and channel size bars needed to reap rewards.
In the presser announcing 100% rakeback for online streamers, GGPoker specifically outlined that content creators don’t need to worry about hitting any viewership or poker winnings benchmarks. All they needed to do was stream their play.
The vlogger program has quite a different feel. It appears to specifically target the big channels, aiming for maximum visibility. However, the rewards are bigger to match, encompassing free tournament entries and accomodation, rather than just online rakeback.
While plenty of poker channels could qualify for some of the lower-tier rewards, the reality is that only a handful can even meet the subscriber counts of the “Elite Vlogger” tier (250,000 or more subs). That level of viewship would put a streamer in the same stratum as Brad Owen (786,000) and Doug Polk (447,000).
Even on the WSOP’s own presser touting the program, only Daniel Negreanu (904,000) meets that bar. Lexy Gavin (206,000), Frankie Cucchiara (183,000), and Corey Eyring (164,000) would only qualify for “Established Vlogger” rewards.
Still, even eliminating hotel costs and reducing buy-in expenses at the lower levels could make a big difference for many poker players. A typical tournament grinder operates on pretty thin margins, as PokerScout detailed in “Costs And Sacrifices Required To Make It As A Traveling Poker Pro.”
Anyone who can build a base of at least 100,000 viewers looks like they’ll find themselves in a pretty advantageous situation. Certainly, at the high end of $30,000, they’d be traveling the WSOP Circuit with minimal expenses. Travel and food would become the primary costs.
However, only a select few will reach those heights.
Image credit: WPT/Flickr (license)
