tyler1

In 2014, Steinkamp achieved Challenger (the highest rank in League of Legends) and 13th overall on the North American ladder. He was infamous among other high ranking players for his skill in playing the character Draven, but also for his toxic behavior. He verbally abused teammates and intentionally lost the game after perceived slights from his teammates.{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bot0QOSwOGY |title=The Story of Tyler1 |date=October 6, 2018 |publisher=theScore esports |accessdate=October 8, 2018}} This behavior eventually led to permanent bans on 22 unique accounts over several years.{{cite web|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2018/01/the-most-toxic-league-of-legends-player-is-back-bu.html|title=The Most Toxic League of Legends Player Is Back, But Riot May Have Stunted His #Reformation|last=Bell|first=Brian|date=January 18, 2018|publisher=Paste|access-date=September 4, 2018}}

Steinkamp later increased his toxic behavior in order to draw in more viewers. In April 2016 he produced a video compilation of his toxic behavior with a promise to reform. The video received over 2 million views on YouTube. His Twitch channel increased from around 5,700 followers to over 92,000 followers by the end of the month. His improved behavior quickly lapsed but his following continued to grow, prompting high profile and professional players such as Meteos and Doublelift to publicly condemn his behavior.{{cite web |url=https://www.riftherald.com/2016/4/30/11543782/tyler1-issued-permanent-ban-riot-games-league-of-legends-twitch-streamer |title=Popular toxic League of Legends streamer Tyler1 issued permanent ban |publisher=The Rift Herald |first=James |last=Dator |date=April 30, 2016 |access-date=September 28, 2018 }}

On April 30, 2016, Riot Games employee "Riot Socrates" announced that due to "a well-documented history" of verbal abuse and player harassment, Steinkamp would no longer be allowed to own a League of Legends account, adding, "this dragged on too long, but we want you to know when the rare player comes along who's a genuine jerk, we've still got your back."{{cite web|url=https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/player-behavior-moderation/8a75KeUR-the-indefinite-banning-of-tyler1|title=The indefinite banning of Tyler1|date=April 30, 2016|publisher=Riot Games|access-date=September 4, 2018|archive-date=March 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200314084250/https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/player-behavior-moderation/8a75KeUR-the-indefinite-banning-of-tyler1|url-status=dead}} Going forward, Riot would ban any account he played on, even if he had not yet broken any rules.

After becoming banned, Steinkamp continued to try to play League of Legends, but as soon as he publicly streamed himself playing, Riot Games would quickly discover it and ban his account. He also tried playing in his free time, repeatedly creating new accounts and climbing the competitive ladder before those too were discovered and banned. Unable to play League of Legends, Steinkamp was forced to branch out to other games to entertain his viewers, such as PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.{{cite web|url=https://compete.kotaku.com/riot-games-unbans-tyler1-a-player-it-once-called-a-ge-1821785186|title=Riot Games Unbans Tyler1, A Player It Once Called A 'Genuine Jerk'|last=Van Allen|first=Eric|date=January 4, 2018|publisher=Kotaku|access-date=September 4, 2018}} He also hosted non-gaming streams such as cosplaying as Bob Ross{{cite news |last1=Erzberger |first1=Tyler |title=Tyler1's road to League of Legends redemption |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/24855025/league-legends-world-championship-tyler1-road-league-legends-redemption |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=ESPN |date=1 October 2018 |language=en}} and teaching his viewers how to cook. Despite the ban, Steinkamp's following continued to grow, and he withdrew from university to focus on online content creation full time.

In November 2017, Steinkamp hosted an online League of Legends tournament called the Tyler1 Championship Series (TCS). A parody of the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), Steinkamp streamed in front of a green screen to images of LCS stadiums and a commentators' desk. The tournament peaked at over 200,000 concurrent viewers on Twitch and was viewed by professional players and LCS casters. The winning team was awarded $10,000, funded from Steinkamp directly and without any sponsors.{{cite web|url=http://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/21599629/opinion-esports-returns-grassroots-tyler1-championship-series|title=League of Legends returns to grassroots with Tyler1 Championship Series|last=Erzberger|first=Tyler|date=November 29, 2017|publisher=ESPN|access-date=September 4, 2018}}

In August 2017, Riot Games community manager Phreak announced that Steinkamp would not be unbanned as some of his recent accounts had been penalized for verbal abuse.{{cite news |last1=Friedman |first1=Daniel |title=How Riot may have made it impossible to keep 'the most toxic League of Legends player' banned |url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/1/9/16868868/tyler1-unbanned-twitch-lol-league-of-legends-riot |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Polygon |date=9 January 2018}} However, in October Riot Games employee Aaron "Sanjuro" Rutledge made insulting remarks about Steinkamp in the official r/LeagueOfLegends Subreddit's Discord server, saying Steinkamp looked like a "homunculus" and that he would die "from a coke overdose or testicular cancer from all the steroids." The company responded saying "what was said is NOT okay, and we take it extremely seriously", apologizing to Steinkamp and to the League of Legends community. Steinkamp responded to the incident saying, "It really sucks that some people still hold a grudge... and refuse to acknowledge I've changed." A few days later, investigative esports journalist Richard Lewis reported that Rutledge no longer worked at Riot Games.{{cite web|url=https://www.riftherald.com/culture/2017/10/3/16411914/riot-sanjuro-lol-fired-tyler1|title=Sanjuro has reportedly been fired from Riot following comments about Tyler1|last=Goslin|first=Andrew|date=October 3, 2017|publisher=The Rift Herald}}

Fans began bringing "#FreeTyler1" signs to LCS games, which Riot Games later prohibited in the summer finals. Soon after, Steinkamp announced on stream that he received an email from Riot Games that his ban would be lifted at the end of the year if the accounts he played in the last month were "clean" of abusive behavior.

In January 2018, Steinkamp was unbanned.{{cite web|url=https://www.riftherald.com/culture/2018/1/4/16850598/tyler1-unbanned-lol-reformed|title=Tyler1 has officially been unbanned by Riot|last=Goslin|first=Austen|date=January 4, 2018|publisher=The Rift Herald|access-date=September 4, 2018}} Tyler's first stream after he became unbanned in January 2018 peaked at over 382,000 viewers, breaking the record for the most concurrent viewers for an individual streamer on Twitch set by Faker in 2017.{{cite web|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/382000-people-tune-in-to-watch-the-return-of-notoriously-toxic-lol-player/|title=382,000 people tune in to watch the return of notoriously toxic LoL player|last=Chalk|first=Andy|date=January 8, 2018|publisher=PC Gamer|access-date=September 4, 2018}} This record was broken a month later by Dr Disrespect's first stream after returning from a 2-month hiatus, although due to conflicting media reporting and technical issues with Twitch, sources disagree whether the record was actually broken.{{cite web|url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/2/6/16979394/dr-disrespect-tyler-1-twitch-viewers-record-holder|title=Dr. DisRespect sets huge new Twitch streaming record, beating Tyler1|last=Alexander|first=Julia|date=February 6, 2018|publisher=Polygon|access-date=September 4, 2018}}

Today, Steinkamp is one of the most popular online streamers. He estimates he earns more than $300,000 each year from merch alone, and estimates he has earned over $5 million in total during his streaming career. He has won the "Best League of Legends Streamer" award at The Streamer Awards in 2021{{cite web |last=Polhamus |first=Blaine |title=All 2022 Streamer Award Winners |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/all-2022-streamer-award-winners |website=Dot Esports |publisher=Gamurs |date=March 13, 2022 |access-date=March 12, 2023}} and 2022.{{cite web |last=Snavely |first=Adam |title=Streamer Awards 2023: All results and winners for every category |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/streamer-awards-2023-all-results-and-winners-for-every-category |website=Dot Esports |publisher=Gamurs |date=March 11, 2023 |access-date=March 12, 2023}}

On April Fools' Day 2018, Steinkamp produced "A Day in the Life of Tyler1," a parody of his life in front of a green screen.{{cite web|url=https://www.polygon.com/2018/4/2/17188794/tyler1-movie-april-fools-day-twitch|title=League of Legends' most notorious streamer hosts eccentric 45-minute movie on Twitch|last=Alexander|first=Julia|date=April 2, 2018|publisher=Polygon|access-date=September 4, 2018}}

In June 2018, during an angry rant about recent changes to the game, Steinkamp admitted he was addicted to League of Legends, prompting other members of the community to share their addiction stories and share advice from Riot Games employees.{{cite web|url=https://www.vpesports.com/leagueoflegends/riot-responds-to-user-with-league-addicition/|title=Riot Responds to User With League Addiction|last=Best|first=Matt|date=June 13, 2018|publisher=VPESPORTS|access-date=September 4, 2018|archive-date=August 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806222957/http://www.vpesports.com/leagueoflegends/riot-responds-to-user-with-league-addicition/|url-status=dead}}

In September 2018, Riot Games invited Steinkamp to play in a "Streamer Showmatch" at the Oakland Arena with Imaqtpie and other content creators.{{cite news |last1=Patterson |first1=Calum |title=League of Legends Streamers Tyler1 and Imaqtpie Face Off in Showmatch at NA LCS Playoffs – Highlights |url=https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/league-of-legends-streamers-tyler1-and-imaqtpie-face-off-in-showmatch-at-na-lcs-playoffs-highlights-159274/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=9 September 2018 |language=en}} He was also invited to commentate with Mark "MarkZ" Zimmerman on the analyst desk for the 2018 NA LCS Summer Finals.

The TCS returned in November 2018 with an increased prize pool of $50,000, funded again by Steinkamp directly.{{cite web |url=https://esportsobserver.com/tyler1-championship-finals-twitch/ |title=What Can We Expect From the Tyler1 Championship Series Finals on Twitch? |first=Max |last=Miceli |date=Nov 29, 2018 |publisher=Esports Observer}} Polygon's Austen Goslin praised particularly its improvement in quality compared to the previous tournament, saying, "What started out as a meme... has morphed into something resembling a real online third-party tournament."{{cite web |url=https://www.riftherald.com/culture/2018/11/30/18118439/watch-tyler1-t1-championship-series-finals |first=Austen |last=Goslin |date=Nov 30, 2018 |publisher=Rift Herald |title=How to watch the Tyler1 Championship Series Finals}} In December 2019 the TCS returned for a third time. Former Echo Fox team owner Rick Fox joined Steinkamp to commentate the first match. The tournament peaked at over 90,000 concurrent viewers.{{cite news |last1=Erzberger |first1=Tyler |title=From permaban to poster boy, Tyler1's TCS is a League of Legends staple |url=https://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/28341660/from-permaban-poster-boy-tyler1-tcs-league-legends-staple |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=ESPN |date=20 December 2019 |language=en}}

In 2020, to prove a point, Steinkamp began a "Jungle Challenge" to achieve Challenger (the game's highest competitive rank) in the jungle role. He briefly took a break from streaming to focus on the goal full time. He achieved that goal in May 2020 after 1,800 games played.{{cite news |last1=Amos |first1=Andrew |title=Tyler1 declares he's "the GOAT" after finishing jungle-only LoL challenge |url=https://www.dexerto.com/league-of-legends/tyler1-declares-hes-the-goat-after-finishing-jungle-only-lol-challenge-1371999/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=28 May 2020 |language=en}} He accomplished the same goal in the top lane role in June 2021 after 1,741 games played{{cite news |last1=Tsiaoussidis |first1=Alex |title=Tyler1 explodes after finally beating his LoL challenge in 1741 games |url=https://www.dexerto.com/league-of-legends/tyler1-explodes-finally-beats-lol-challenge-1586158/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=1 June 2021 |language=en}} and the mid lane role in September 2021 after 1,800 games played.{{cite news |last1=Robson |first1=Shay |title=Tyler1 lays out his demands to Riot after reaching Challenger as mid-laner |url=https://www.dexerto.com/league-of-legends/tyler1-lays-out-his-demands-to-riot-after-reaching-challenger-as-mid-laner-1659801/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=23 September 2021 |language=en}} In February 2022 he reached Challenger on the final role of support after 450 games, an achievement few players have done in all five roles in League of Legends.{{cite news |last1=Scotti |first1=Lawrence |title=Tyler1 finally hits Challenger in every role & celebrates by trashing League Support players |url=https://www.dexerto.com/league-of-legends/tyler1-finally-hits-challenger-in-every-role-celebrates-by-trashing-league-support-players-1766482/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=19 February 2022 |language=en}} Riot Games celebrated his accomplishment on Twitter and sent Steinkamp a custom-made gift of five medals, one for each role he reached Challenger in.{{Cite web |last=Polhamus |first=Blaine |date=2022-02-23 |title=Tyler1 receives custom gift from Riot after reaching Challenger rank in all 5 League roles |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/tyler1-receives-custom-gift-from-riot-after-reaching-challenger-rank-in-all-5-league-roles |access-date=2022-03-09 |website=Dot Esports |language=en-US}}

In October 2020, Steinkamp was signed by South Korean esports team T1 as a content creator.{{cite news |last=Lupasco |first=Cristian |date=2020-10-17 |title=T1 signs Tyler1 as a content creator |url=https://dotesports.com/news/t1-signs-tyler1-as-a-content-creator |work=Dot Esports |access-date=2020-11-01}} The organization produced a video with Steinkamp and T1 player Faker at the Heart Attack Grill in Las Vegas.{{cite news |last1=O'Brien |first1=Joe |title=Tyler1 spanked for not finishing 20,000 calorie burger on date with Faker |url=https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/tyler1-spanked-for-not-finishing-20000-calorie-burger-on-date-with-faker-1316601/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=22 January 2020 |language=en}} The organization parted ways with Steinkamp in 2022.{{cite news |last1=Datuin |first1=Sage |title=Tyler1 parts ways with T1 |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/tyler1-parts-ways-with-t1 |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dot Esports |date=1 February 2022}}

In 2023, Steinkamp developed an interest for online chess. He played 2,435 games in 76 days, an average of 32 games per day.{{cite news |last1=Martinello |first1=Eva |title=Tyler1 is only new to chess but it turns out he's surprisingly good |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/tyler1-is-only-new-to-chess-but-it-turns-out-hes-surprisingly-good |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dot Esports |date=9 October 2023}} Later that year he was invited to compete in the amateur chess tournament PogChamps.{{cite news |title=PogChamps 5 Lineup Revealed Feat. xQc, Tyler1, QTCinderella And More, Action Starts July 26 |url=https://www.chess.com/news/view/pogchamps-5-line-up-revealed-16-amazing-names |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Chess.com |date=25 July 2023}} In February 2024, he won "Best Chess Streamer" at the 2023 Streamer Awards.{{cite web |last1=Michael |first1=Cale |last2=Taifalos |first2=Nicholas |title=Streamer Awards 2024: All results and winners for every category |url=https://dotesports.com/streaming/news/streamer-awards-2024-all-results-and-winners-for-every-category |website=Dot Esports |access-date=18 February 2024 |date=18 February 2024}} In March 2024, Steinkamp reached 1705 Elo on Chess.com, a rating that is in the top 1.5% of all players on the site.{{cite news |last1=Gan |first1=Jeremy |title=Gothamchess amazed as Tyler1 becomes better than "99% of players" in 8 months |url=https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/gothamchess-amazed-as-tyler1-becomes-better-than-99-of-players-in-8-months-2598071/ |access-date=19 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=19 March 2024 |language=en}} He achieved a peak Elo of 1960 two months later, placing him in the top 0.6%.{{cite web |title=BIG_TONKA_T Rapid Chess Stats |url=https://www.chess.com/stats/live/rapid/big_tonka_t |website=Chess.com |access-date=15 May 2024}}

Since his unban, Steinkamp remained notorious for verbal toxicity. During an October 2022 stream sponsored by Blizzard Entertainment shortly after its release of Overwatch 2, it was revealed he had already been banned from the game's chat; a roll-over from his 10 year ban in Overwatch 1.{{cite news |last1=Amos |first1=Andrew |title=Twitch star Tyler1 is already chat-banned in Overwatch 2 for five years |url=https://www.dexerto.com/overwatch/twitch-star-tyler1-chat-banned-overwatch-2-1958057/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=14 October 2022 |language=en}} In July 2022, after losing a match, he accused one of his teammates of wintrading a player on the opposing team. It was revealed they were players of the amateur team Team Ambition and were removed from the team after an investigation.{{cite news |last1=Oh |first1=Terry |title=Two amateur League of Legends players exiled after Tyler1 exposes wintrading |url=https://www.dexerto.com/league-of-legends/two-amateur-lol-players-exiled-tyler1-exposes-wintrading-1865815/ |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dexerto |date=8 July 2022 |language=en}} In 2024, Steinkamp made hostile remarks about professional player CoreJJ after a poor performance in his game, calling him a "paycheck-stealing LCS [player]."{{cite news |last1=Kelly |first1=Michael |title=Tyler1 slams 'paycheck-stealing LCS players' for allegedly 'openly griefing' LoL matches |url=https://dotesports.com/league-of-legends/news/tyler1-slams-paycheck-stealing-lcs-players-for-allegedly-openly-griefing-lol-matches |access-date=8 March 2024 |work=Dot Esports |date=28 February 2024}}

File:Tyler1 & Macaiyla - Twitch Rivals Power Meet 2.png Power Meet 2 event in March 2022]]

Steinkamp studied computer science at Central Methodist University before withdrawing to focus on his streaming career. While at Central Methodist University, he played as a running back for the university's football team.{{cite web |url=http://www.cmueagles.com/roster/12/5/4959.php |title=Tyler Steinkamp |website=Central Methodist University |access-date=September 4, 2018}}{{cite web |url=http://www.espn.com/esports/story/_/id/21599629/opinion-esports-returns-grassroots-tyler1-championship-series |title=League of Legends returns to grassroots with Tyler1 Championship Series |last=Erzberger |first=Tyler |publisher=Associated Press |date=November 29, 2017 |website=ESPN |access-date=February 19, 2019}}

In an interview with The Washington Post, Steinkamp said he pays his mother $70,000 per year to cook dinner for him.

On December 17, 2023, Steinkamp announced on social media that his girlfriend Macaiyla was pregnant.{{Cite web |title=Instagram |url=https://www.instagram.com/tyler1_alpha/p/C0-DO3OLH46/?hl=en&img_index=1 |access-date=2023-12-18 |website=www.instagram.com}} Their daughter was born on April 11, 2024.{{Cite web |date=April 18, 2024 |title=X |url=https://x.com/macaiyla/status/1781049949167239446 |access-date=April 18, 2024 |website=X}}

• List of most-followed Twitch channels
• Jensen, a professional League of Legends player that was similarly indefinitely banned and later unbanned

{{reflist}}

• {{twitch|loltyler1}}
• {{YouTube|c=UCwV_0HmQkRrTcrReaMxPeDw}}
• {{Chess.com member|big_tonka_t}}

Category:Living people

Category:League of Legends AD Carry players

Category:American Twitch (service) streamers

Category:Central Methodist University alumni

Category:1995 births

Category:YouTubers from Missouri

Category:People from Ralls County, Missouri

Category:African-American media personalities

Category:Streamer Award winners