"Huge shout-out to... Ronaldo" - IShowSpeed's acceptance speech at Streamy Awards 2023 leaves fans in splits

YouTube streamer Darren "IShowSpeed" has been consistently making headlines recently, and his win at the Streamy Awards has put him in the spotlight once again. For those unaware, the Streamy Awards for 2023 concluded today, and the Ohio-born streamer bagged a well-deserved victory by securing the Best Variety Streamer award at the event.

In line with the animated style he adopts when making public appearances, the streamer added a touch of comedy to the occasion by playfully acknowledging his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, during his acceptance speech. He simply added:

IShowSpeed does the "Siuu" during his Streamy Awards speech

IShowSpeed's connection with Ronaldo stretches back quite a while, as the streamer had been striving to meet the football star for almost a year. His persistence finally paid off recently when he managed to meet the footballer during a Portugal international match in June 2023.

The streamer went to the extent of having Ronaldo's face tattooed on one of his arms, so fans of IShowSpeed weren't surprised to hear him name-drop Ronaldo in his recent speech at the Streamy Awards. To top it off, he even dropped the "Siuu," which is the footballer's signature celebration after he scores a goal.

IShowSpeed faced stiff competition from other prominent figures nominated for the Variety Streamer award, including Emily "Emiru," Saqib "LIRIK," Ludwig, and Rachell "Valkyrae."

Apart from his nomination and victory as Best Variety Streamer, he also earned a nomination for Streamer of the Year 2023. However, this accolade eluded him as it was secured by his friend and fellow streamer Kai Cenat. Other significant nominees in this category included Alex "Quackity," Ludwig, Valkyrae, Emiru, Hasan "HasanAbi," Ironmouse, Felix "xQc," and Tarik.

What did fans say?

Darren is undeniably a prominent figure in the YouTube streaming community, boasting an impressive following. He managed to achieve a remarkable milestone of 20 million subscribers not long ago.

Given his considerable influence and online presence, his well-earned triumph garnered a flurry of reactions. Here are some of the notable ones:

The Streamy Award 2023 had a star-studded lineup featuring some of the most notable figures in the online realm. Among the victorious were prominent personalities JJ "KSI," Logan Paul, Kai Cenat, and Jimmy "MrBeast."

About the author

Shreyan is an esports and gaming journalist at Sportskeeda, focusing on streamer content. He holds a Master's degree in English Literature, and journalism was the most logical next step for him. Although titles like FIFA 08 and GTA San Andreas acted as the catalyst for his love of video games, the exponential growth of the streaming community also propelled his interest in the genre. He also has a prior work experience of 2 years.

Shreyan considers factual and accurate content to be the most important as a creator and a reader. He ensures this by double checking every piece of information in his articles and sourcing it from streamers directly rather than depend on third parties. His works have caught the attention of the heavyweights, with the PR team of Sidemen (a YouTube group he’s been following since his teenage days) and Chess.com reaching out to him for sending exclusive press releases.

Shreyan would love to drop into the virtual world of FIFA/EA FC and explore it further but, he would recommend playing Red Dead Redemption 2 to gaming skeptics for its top-tier gameplay, story and characters. During his downtime, he enjoys balancing his interests in reading, watching films and sports, and of course, playing video games.

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