Disguised Toast is expanding beyond streaming, but it’s coming at a cost

polygon.com:

Jeremy Wang, known as Disguised Toast on Twitch, has long been known as a shitposter. The streamer got his start doing trick plays and trolling players on the digital card game Hearthstone. In 2017, he joined OfflineTV, a content creation group co-founded by Pokimane and Scarra. Over time, he amassed some 2.8 million followers on Twitch and 3.7 million on YouTube by streaming games like Among Us alongside other talent like Valkyrae and Corpse Husband.

Now, he’s trying something new. He’s the founder and owner of Disguised (DSG), a Valorant team playing in the North American Challengers League. Polygon talked with Disguised Toast over Zoom about why streamers are expanding their presence outside of livestreaming, the challenge of starting an esports team, and why he would consider gambling sponsorships even after the Twitch controversy.

Disguised Toast told Polygon that he was surprised by how unprofitable esports is. “I had heard about it, but I didn’t really understand it until I dove into the nitty-gritty of things.” He said that he’s prepared to lose “like a million bucks” in the venture over the next two years, but that he would reassess after that. For now, he’s looking to make the venture more profitable — even if it means raising money in controversial ways.

Gambling, and the extent to which streamers should use their platforms to promote it, has long been a controversial topic among top content creators. In 2021, Disguised Toast said he enjoyed gambling for fun with friends, but called gambling streams “weird.” In a YouTube video, he said: “These streamers have the disposable income and they get fat stacks to gamble. I don’t think you guys comprehend how much these gamba streamers are getting paid.” Fast