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Sidemen Step Up

By Abhiveer Singh


In social media there are a few platforms that have maintained popularity, such as TikTok, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Currently, one of the biggest YouTube channels on the scene is the Sidemen, boasting a subscriber total of 17 million on their main channel and another 74 million across all of the Sidemen YouTube channels combined. The Sidemen consist of seven YouTubers from the UK: KSI, Miniminter, Zerkaa, TBJZL, Behzinga, Vikkstar123 and W2S. This group started posting content together nearly ten years ago. Ever since then, their channels have continued to grow, leading them to develop a highly devoted fan base and make millions from a variety of income streams like merchandise and restaurants.


“It’s really cool to see how a group of YouTubers with roots in gaming have evolved into this massive organization,” junior Varun Pillai said.


The group decided to give back to the community by hosting the Sidemen Charity Event. The event started in 2016 and has become a tradition. The event consists of a soccer match that pits the Sidemen against top YouTubers. A few weeks ago, the Sidemen hosted their annual charity event, which was their biggest and most successful one yet.


“They’re hilarious, and it's fun seeing them play my favorite sport,” junior Ben Mathew said.


Source by Kristen Schneider

Sabeena Ramdarie is immersed in the Sidemen Charity match.


The match broke the record for the most concurrent viewers by having over 2.5 million viewers simultaneously. They sold out an entire stadium and had thousands of people trying to get their hands on tickets in the resale market.


“It was probably so successful because the group has one of the biggest brands overseas, especially in Europe. The Sidemen also have a big following, and merging the Sidemen vs. YouTubers helped target a larger audience,” senior Aman Sinha said.


The match showcased people such as IShowSpeed, Noah Beck, Mr Beast, Deji, Karl Jacobs, ChrisMD, Lazarbeam, Jidion, AnEsonGib, Chandler and many more. The match was a back-and-forth affair. It ended with the Sidemen barely scraping through with a victory score of 8-7.


“Watching Speed take KSI was entertaining to watch and made the event very exciting,” freshman Kayla Pinto said.


This year, the event was one of a kind on social media and was very successful in terms of raising money for charities, with proceeds reaching over one million dollars. The charities that will benefit from this are Campaign Against Living Miserably (receiving 40% of donations), Teenage Cancer Trust (receiving 40% of donations), Rays of Sunshine (receiving 10% of donations) and M7 Education (a charity founded by Sidemen member Miniminter) receiving 10% of donations.


“This event is one of the best events of this year, and it was even more exciting to see the various YouTubers and their exciting ability. I look forward to seeing what they do in the future,” junior Vincent Jiang said.


Although there is no guarantee of what will happen, the success of this event leads many to believe that the Sidemen will keep growing and changing the lives of millions.


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