xQc
Lengyel in 2023
Born
Félix Lengyel

(1995-11-12) November 12, 1995 (age 28)
Laval, Quebec, Canada
Twitch information
Channel
Years active2014–present
Followers12 million
Kick information
Channel
Years active2023–present
Followers650 thousand
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2015–present
Subscribers2.34 million[1]
Total views1.5 billion[1]
100,000 subscribers
1,000,000 subscribers
Esports career
Career information
GameOverwatch
Playing career2016–2019
RoleTank
Career highlights and awards
Last updated: February 1, 2024

Félix Lengyel (French pronunciation: [feliks lɑ̃ʒɛl];[a] born November 12, 1995), better known as xQc (formerly xQcOW), is a Canadian online streamer and former professional Overwatch player.

While he is widely recognized for his streaming career, Lengyel initially gained recognition as a professional Overwatch player. His esports career began in 2016, during which he also started streaming regularly. He joined the Dallas Fuel, a team competing in the inaugural season of the Overwatch League, in late 2017. However, his time with the Dallas Fuel was marred by controversy, resulting in repeated suspensions and ultimately his release from the team midway through the season. Additionally, Lengyel represented Team Canada in the Overwatch World Cup from 2017 to 2019.

Following his departure from competitive Overwatch, Lengyel shifted his focus to a full-time streaming career on Twitch. During this period, he also signed with several esports organizations, such as Sentinels and Luminosity Gaming, as a content creator. Throughout his streaming career, Lengyel has faced several bans and suspensions on Twitch for violating platform guidelines. These incidents involved showing explicit content, making offensive remarks, and engaging in stream sniping. Despite these controversies, Lengyel maintained a large and dedicated fanbase, consistently attracting high viewership numbers. He was the most-watched streamer on Twitch for three consecutive years, from 2020 to 2022. In June 2023, Lengyel signed a two-year, non-exclusive $100 million deal to stream on Kick.

Career

Early streaming

After finishing high school, Lengyel enrolled in a CEGEP, studying business administration until dropping out in second year after feeling "directionless". At the age of 19, Lengyel subsequently began streaming on the platform Twitch, where he initially played League of Legends (LoL) under the pseudonym xQcLoL.[2] The name "xQc" was derived from the last letter of his first name, "x," combined with the abbreviation for his home province of Quebec, "QC".[3] As his streaming career progressed, Lengyel gained recognition and prominence primarily through his involvement with Overwatch, a video game developed by Blizzard Entertainment. Consequently, he adjusted his alias to xQcOW to reflect his association with Overwatch.[2]

Esports

Lengyel embarked on his professional esports career in Overwatch by initially competing in smaller online tournaments as a tank player for teams such as DatZit Gaming.[2] In October 2016, he was recruited by Denial Esports, a prominent multi-game esports organization.[4] However, after a brief period, Denial disbanded, leading Lengyel and his former teammates to form an independent roster called Yikes, which later underwent a name change to Arc 6.[5][6] During their tenure, the team participated in Season Zero of Overwatch Contenders, where Lengyel's competitive drive appeared to reach unhealthy levels. He acknowledged prioritizing gaming over fundamental aspects of life, such as sleep, nutrition, and personal relationships, and he would dedicate all of his time to playing ranked matches to regain confidence following subpar performances.[7] Lengyel also had the opportunity to represent Team Canada in the 2017 Overwatch World Cup. The team reached the tournament finals before ultimately being defeated by the reigning champions, South Korea.[8] Despite the loss, Lengyel was named the event's most valuable player.[9]

Lengyel (left) at the 2018 Overwatch World Cup

In October 2017, Lengyel joined the Dallas Fuel, one of the teams competing in the inaugural season of the Overwatch League (OWL).[6] However, before the start of the season, he faced two suspensions on his personal Overwatch account from Blizzard. The first suspension was a 72-hour penalty in November for misusing the game's reporting system. The second suspension, a seven-day penalty in December, was a result of him throwing games on stream.[10] Lengyel's debut in the Overwatch League occurred during the Fuel's first match of the season on January 10, 2018. The team suffered a 1–2 loss to the Seoul Dynasty.[11] Following the Fuel's third match, a 0–4 defeat against the Houston Outlaws on January 18, Lengyel made homophobic remarks directed at Austin "Muma" Wilmot, a player from the Outlaws who is openly gay, during his personal Twitch stream. Lengyel later issued an apology to Muma on Twitter, expressing that his comments were not intended to be malicious and that he had spoken hastily. In response to the incident, the Fuel decided to bench Lengyel for the subsequent match on January 19. Additionally, the Overwatch League fined him $2,000 and suspended him for four matches. The Fuel then extended the suspension through February 10.[12]

Lengyel made his return to the Overwatch League on February 23 in a 3–1 victory over the Los Angeles Gladiators.[13] However, his comeback was short-lived. On March 10, he received a fine of $4,000 and another four-match suspension from the league. The disciplinary action was taken due to his usage of an emote in a "racially disparaging manner" during an Overwatch League stream and on his personal social media accounts. Additionally, Lengyel had used "disparaging language" against Overwatch League broadcasters and players on his social media and personal stream.[14] The following day, Lengyel was released from the Dallas Fuel team.[15] In an interview with The Washington Post, he expressed that there were no racial undertones intended with his use of the emote. While Lengyel did not feel that he had made a mistake, he expressed regret for how his actions were misconstrued. He also admitted uncertainty about whether pursuing a professional career in Overwatch was the right path for him.[16]

Lengyel's involvement in the Overwatch scene continued as he joined various teams over the years. He became a part of the Overwatch Contenders teams GOATS and Gladiators Legion.[17][18] Additionally, he represented Team Canada in the 2018 and 2019 Overwatch World Cups.[19][20]

Return to full-time streaming

After his departure from Dallas Fuel in 2018, Lengyel shifted his focus primarily towards his streaming career. In February 2019, he joined esports organization Sentinels as a content creator.[21] By May 2019, Lengyel had gained significant success as one of the most prominent variety streamers on Twitch.[7] However, Lengyel also faced some controversies during his streaming career. In July 2019, he received a three-day ban from Twitch for streaming a video that contained brief explicit content, specifically showing a penis. Although a Twitch employee had reportedly permitted the video, the ban was enforced. However, Lengyel's ban was lifted after just one day.[22] Despite these incidents, Lengyel achieved notable milestones on Twitch. In December 2019, he emerged as Twitch's most watched streamer, accumulating nearly eight million hours of watch time, surpassing other popular channels by a significant margin. Overall, he ranked as the sixth-most watched streamer of the year, accumulating nearly 54 million hours of watch time, with over 14% coming from December alone.[23]

In 2020, Lengyel faced a series of bans and controversies during his streaming career. On February 29, he received a three-day ban from Twitch for streaming explicit content in the game Strip 4: Classmate Study. Lengyel entered a code that uncensored nudity in the game, leading to a brief exposure of the female character's breasts. Twitch upheld the ban even after his appeal, and the game gained attention, reaching the top of Steam's "new and trending" list.[24] In March 2020, Lengyel started playing chess on his stream, and in April, he received mentoring from chess grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura. Twitch and Chess.com collaborated to organize the inaugural PogChamps, a chess tournament that took place from June 5 to 19.[25] Lengyel participated in the tournament, and in a match against Charlie "MoistCr1TiKaL" White, he was defeated in just six moves. The match became the most-watched video on Chess.com's YouTube channel, garnering over ten million views by May 2021.[26] In the PogChamps tournament, Lengyel reached the consolation bracket semifinals but ultimately lost to Ludwig Ahgren.[27] During PogChamps, on June 12, 2020, Lengyel received a 24-hour Twitch ban after accidentally opening a video of gorillas engaging in sexual activity, which was submitted by one of his viewers.[28] Sentinels decided to part ways with him on August 27, 2020, after his request for release.[21] He then joined Luminosity Gaming on October 1, 2020.[29] Lengyel faced another suspension from Twitch on November 18, 2020, when he and his team stream sniped an opposing team during a Twitch Rivals event for Fall Guys. This marked his fourth suspension from Twitch, resulting in a seven-day ban. He was also banned from Twitch Rivals for six months and had to forfeit his prize winnings from the event.[30] Despite the bans and controversies, Lengyel achieved remarkable Twitch viewership in 2020. He accumulated the highest watch hours at over 174 million, surpassing all other channels by nearly 50 million watch hours.[2]

By mid-2021, Lengyel continued to dominate Twitch viewership, with 163 million hours watched that year, nearly double that of the second-largest channel.[31] In June 2021, Lengyel made the decision to move back to Canada due to experiencing multiple instances of swatting, a dangerous prank targeting streamers. He expressed genuine fear for his safety and cited concerns about his well-being.[32][33] In October 2021, a leak exposed the earnings of top Twitch streamers, including Lengyel. The leak revealed that he was the highest-paid individual streamer, earning over $8 million since 2019. While the accuracy of the leak was questioned, Lengyel confirmed that his reported earnings were correct.[34][35] Lengyel maintained his position as the most-watched streamer on Twitch in 2021, accumulating 274 million hours watched. His peak viewership reached 173,000 viewers, although it fell short compared to the channel with the highest peak, which garnered 2.5 million viewers.[36]

In April 2022, Lengyel participated in the r/Place social experiment on Reddit, an online canvas in which registered users could edit by changing the color of a single pixel. During the event, he targeted a My Little Pony art piece, which resulted in an influx of death threats. Lengyel said that he received more death threats in just one hour during that month than he had throughout his previous six years of streaming combined.[37] Despite the negativity, he broke his Twitch viewership record, peaking at over 293,000 viewers during the event.[38] Later that month, he surpassed that record while streaming a beta build of Overwatch 2, reaching a peak of over 312,000 viewers.[39] He continued to lead all Twitch streamers in terms of hours watched for the year 2022.[40]

In January 2023, Lengyel announced his departure from Luminosity Gaming, marking the end of his affiliation with the organization.[40] In June 2023, Lengyel made headlines by signing a significant deal with the streaming platform Kick. Lengyel expressed his motivation for signing with Kick, citing the platform's ability to offer him opportunities for new and diverse activities that he was unable to explore with Twitch. The deal, valued at $70 million over two years, established a non-exclusive partnership between Lengyel and Kick. Additionally, the agreement included the potential for performance-based bonuses, totaling approximately $30 million. With the highest potential payout reaching $100 million, the deal was noted as one of the largest in entertainment history. The magnitude of the deal drew comparisons to high-profile sports contracts, such as LeBron James' $97 million, two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers.[41] Lengyel finished 2023 as Twitch's fourth-most watched streamer with a total of 89 million hours watched on the platform.[42]

Personal life

Lengyel was born on November 12, 1995, in Laval, Quebec, Canada.[3][43][44] He is of Hungarian descent.[45]

Awards and nominations

Year Ceremony Category Result Ref.
2017 2017 Overwatch World Cup Most Valuable Player Won [9]
2018 2018 Esports Awards Streamer of the Year Nominated [46]
2020 Canadian Game Awards Best Streamer Nominated [47][48]
2020 Esports Awards Streamer of the Year Nominated [49]
2021 2021 Esports Awards Streamer of the Year Nominated [50]
2022 The Streamer Awards Best GTA Role-play Streamer Nominated [51]
Streamer of the Year Nominated
Canadian Game Awards Best Streamer Nominated [52]
12th Streamy Awards Streamer of the Year Nominated [53][54]
Just Chatting Won
2023 The Streamer Awards Best Variety Streamer Won [55]
Streamer of the Year Nominated
13th Streamy Awards Streamer of the Year Nominated [56]
Just Chatting Nominated
2024 The Streamer Awards Best Variety Streamer Nominated [57]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The original, Hungarian pronunciation of Lengyel is [ˈlɛɲɟɛl].

References

  1. ^ a b "About xQc". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b c d Howard, Charlie; et al. (February 25, 2022). "The Rise Again of xQc — From esports failure to king of Twitch". Upcomer. Archived from the original on March 16, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Lee, Alexander (September 29, 2020). "Everything You Need To Know About xQc". G Fuel. Archived from the original on April 30, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  4. ^ Duwe, Scott (October 13, 2016). "Denial Esports Signs Overwatch Team". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  5. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (May 3, 2017). "Denial Esports drops its entire Overwatch team". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  6. ^ a b Duwe, Scott (October 28, 2017). "Dallas Fuel signs eccentric tank main xQc to Overwatch League roster". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Viana, Bhernardo (May 7, 2019). "XQc: 'There will never be a harmony between streaming and playing that I'm comfortable with'". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  8. ^ Van Allen, Eric (November 4, 2017). "Overwatch World Cup Comes Down To A Fight Over Meters". Kotaku. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Alonzo, Damian (November 9, 2017). "Win or lose, the Overwatch World Cup was full of great storylines". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on December 17, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  10. ^ Grayson, Nathan (December 19, 2017). "Overwatch League Players Keep Getting In Trouble". Kotaku. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  11. ^ Katsuragi, Chris (January 10, 2018). "Dallas Fuel vs Seoul Dynasty | Map 4 Recap". Overwatch Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on October 21, 2018.
  12. ^ Wolf, Jacob (January 19, 2018). "Dallas Fuel suspend xQc for anti-gay slurs; Overwatch League fines player". ESPN. Archived from the original on March 23, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  13. ^ Wenrich, Connor (February 23, 2018). "Dallas Fuel burns blue with a 3-1 win". Overwatch Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on October 21, 2018.
  14. ^ Mastin, Sabriel (March 10, 2018). "xQc receives a new fine and suspension". Overwatch Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on March 10, 2018.
  15. ^ Wolf, Jacob (March 11, 2018). "xQc released from Dallas Fuel after receiving second Overwatch League suspension". ESPN. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  16. ^ Avi, Selk (March 14, 2018). "'I blame myself': A fallen e-sports star reflects on video gaming's image problems". The Washington Post (Interview). Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  17. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (June 7, 2018). "Controversial former Overwatch League player xQc joins Contenders Trials team". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  18. ^ Abbas, Malcolm (February 12, 2019). "Popular Twitch streamer xQc joins Gladiators Legion as a substitute main-tank". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  19. ^ Baker, Harry (July 10, 2018). "Canada announce final starting roster for 2018 Overwatch World Cup". Overwatch Wire. USA Today. Archived from the original on August 15, 2018.
  20. ^ Richardson, Liz (July 29, 2019). "Team Canada introduces Overwatch World Cup roster". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 17, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  21. ^ a b "xQc parts ways with Sentinels". Reuters. Field Level Media. August 27, 2020. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  22. ^ Byers, Preston (July 31, 2019). "xQc's Twitch channel unbanned after less than a day". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  23. ^ Michael, Cale (December 28, 2019). "XQc ends 2019 on a high note by claiming December's top spot on Twitch". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  24. ^ Bily, Dustin (March 3, 2020). "Strip Connect Four gets a free marketing boost after Twitch bans xQc for streaming it". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  25. ^ D'Anastasio, Cecilia (June 14, 2020). "The Grandmaster Who Got Twitch Hooked on Chess". Wired. Archived from the original on October 12, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  26. ^ Abbot, Will (May 9, 2021). "PogChamps 4 and the fight for the future of chess". Wired UK. Archived from the original on March 10, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  27. ^ "VoyBoy, MoistCr1tikal Win Chess.com PogChamps Finals". Chess.com. June 23, 2020. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  28. ^ Duwe, Scott (June 12, 2020). "XQc receives 24-hour Twitch ban for showing clip of gorillas having sex". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  29. ^ Frascarelli, Victor (October 1, 2020). "Luminosity Gaming Signs Streamer xQc, Lands Sponsor for Reality Show on Twitch". The Esports Observer. Sports Business Journal. Archived from the original on November 21, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  30. ^ Chalk, Andy (November 18, 2020). "xQc has been suspended from Twitch for stream-sniping in Fall Guys". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on November 22, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  31. ^ Murray, Trent (August 6, 2021). "xQc dominates the first half of the year - Twitch viewership recap for H1 2021". The Esports Observer. Sports Business Journal. Retrieved April 7, 2022.[permanent dead link]
  32. ^ Ng, Hayley (February 23, 2022). "Doxxing and Swatting: The Deadly, Growing Threats Faced by Twitch Streamers". Centennial Beauty. Archived from the original on February 2, 2023. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  33. ^ Richman, Olivia (May 16, 2022). "xQc has moved back to Canada after doxxing issues continue". InvenGlobal. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  34. ^ Grayson, Nathan (October 6, 2021). "Massive Twitch hack reveals streamers' pay, with top stars making millions". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 6, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  35. ^ Irwin, Kate (October 22, 2021). "XQc talks Twitch, Overwatch 2, and his move to Los Angeles". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  36. ^ Troughton, James (January 10, 2022). "XQC Was 2021's Most-Watched Twitch Streamer". The Gamer. Archived from the original on April 7, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  37. ^ Datuin, Sage (April 4, 2022). "xQc says he's received more death threats in April than past 6 years combined thanks to viral r/Place art streams". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 4, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  38. ^ Miter, Mateusz (April 5, 2022). "xQc breaks his all-time Twitch viewership record off the back of Reddit's /r/Place hype". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  39. ^ McIntyre, Isaac (April 29, 2022). "xQc roars to huge new Twitch record off the back of Overwatch 2 beta hype". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on April 29, 2022. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  40. ^ a b Miceli, Max (January 13, 2023). "XQc expected to leave Luminosity following 'thank you' video on social media". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on June 20, 2023. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  41. ^ Browning, Kellen (June 16, 2023). "Twitch Star Signs $100 Million Deal With Rival Platform". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  42. ^ Fragen, Jordan (December 19, 2023). "KaiCenat, LoL, Diablo IV top Twitch 2023 charts | StreamElements". VentureBeat. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  43. ^ Lengyel, Félix [@xQc] (November 12, 2020). "quarter of a century. FeelsBirthdayMan https://t.co/IgJQ7Nw2ft" (Tweet). Retrieved July 19, 2022 – via Twitter.
  44. ^ Benessaieh, Karim (October 6, 2021). "Le Lavallois Félix Lengyel aurait engrangé 8,5 millions US". La Presse (in French). Retrieved November 8, 2022.
  45. ^ Birkás, Péter (March 12, 2018). "Kirúgták a botrányt halmozó magyar származású e-sportolót" [Scandal-hit e-athlete of Hungarian descent fired]. 24.hu (in Hungarian). Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  46. ^ "Esports Awards 2018 | Esports Awards". April 26, 2021. Archived from the original on December 27, 2021. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  47. ^ "Streamer Nominee - xQc". Canadian Game Awards. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  48. ^ "Canadian Game Awards : The Results". Canadian Game Awards. September 19, 2020. Archived from the original on June 18, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  49. ^ "Esports Awards 2020 | Esports Awards". April 27, 2021. Archived from the original on January 26, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  50. ^ Esports.gg (November 21, 2021). "Esports Awards 2021: Ibai wins Streamer of the Year, beating out Shroud, Dr Disrespect, xQc". Esports. Archived from the original on April 18, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2021.
  51. ^ Miceli, Max (February 22, 2022). "All nominees for QTCinderella's Streamer Awards". Dot Esports. GAMURS Group. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved March 15, 2022.
  52. ^ Vegvari, Steve (April 8, 2022). "Introducing the Winners of the 2022 Canadian Game Awards". Canadian Game Awards. Archived from the original on May 4, 2022. Retrieved April 24, 2022.
  53. ^ Hipes, Patrick (October 27, 2022). "Streamy Awards Nominations: MrBeast Tops List Again". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 6, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  54. ^ "12th Annual Winners". Streamys. Streamy Awards. December 4, 2022. Archived from the original on October 30, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
  55. ^ Snavely, Adam (March 11, 2023). "Streamer Awards 2023: All results and winners for every category". Dot Esports. Gamurs. Archived from the original on March 12, 2023. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  56. ^ Brant, Brian (August 27, 2023). "Streamy Awards 2023: Complete Winners List". People. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  57. ^ Michael, Cale; Taifalos, Nicholas (February 18, 2024). "Streamer Awards 2024: All results and winners for every category". Dot Esports. Gamurs. Retrieved February 18, 2024.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to xQc.
Overwatch League
Streamy Awards winners – Channel, Series, or Show
More
Categories