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Kai Cenat has become the first streamer in history to reach one million subscribers on Twitch, hitting the milestone during his Mafiathon 3 marathon. But what should have been a celebration quickly turned into a heated debate, as many VALORANT fans accused Riot Games of wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars on gifting subs to Cenat.

The reality, however, is a little different.

Riot’s Role in SUBtember

Twitch’s annual SUBtember event returned this year with discounts and bonuses for subscribers. For every five gift subs purchased, Twitch automatically added a sixth. Riot Games stepped in as the event’s official sponsor to tie it into VALORANT Champions Paris 2025, putting the game’s branding front and centre across the campaign.

When Cenat’s sub count skyrocketed past one million, speculation swirled that Riot had bankrolled the surge. Analyst Spideraxe estimated the figure at “at a minimum $360,000” worth of Tier 1 subs.

But Riot’s Global Head of VALORANT Esports, Leo Faria, cleared things up on X: “We’re sponsoring the event, not gifting the subs.” In other words, Twitch covered the bonus subs as part of SUBtember, while Riot simply paid for the sponsorship rights.

Fans Still Frustrated

Even with that clarification, the community pushback didn’t stop. Some fans argued that Riot’s money would be better spent on fixing long-standing issues in the Premier system or investing in Tier 2 and Tier 3 esports.

Trick called the campaign “a terrible advertisement,” pointing out that the conversion rate of impressions would likely be minimal compared to more direct grassroots investment. Others argued that supporting smaller streamers or funding regional competitions would have been a smarter play.

Riot’s Marketing Play

From Riot’s perspective, the sponsorship aligned VALORANT with Twitch’s biggest moment ever. By attaching the game to Cenat’s record-breaking achievement, VALORANT secured massive global visibility during one of the platform’s most-watched events of all time.

And while the optics sparked outrage, Riot didn’t directly spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on subscriptions, that was Twitch’s side of the deal. Riot essentially bought brand exposure, not subs.

The Takeaway

Kai Cenat’s one million subs mark a milestone in streaming history, and Riot’s involvement ensured VALORANT was part of that conversation. But the backlash shows how sensitive fans are about where Riot spends its money. For many, marketing campaigns don’t matter as much as fixing the core issues that keep VALORANT’s competitive scene from thriving.