Kyle Giersdorf[1] (born: December 30, 2002 ),[2] better known online as Bugha, is an American YouTube gamer who is known for playing Fortnite: Battle Royale competitively. He is mainly known for competing and winning in Fortnite's World Cup solo finals. He is currently a member of Dignitas.
History[]
It is unknown what Kyle has done before making Fortnite content, but his oldest videos are montages of his professional Fortnite gameplay. In January, he was starting to find exposure making these. On March 25, 2019, Kyle joined Sentinels.[3] On April 14, 2019, Kyle qualified for the World Cup solos, achieving first place during the finals of week 1.[4]
Winning the Fortnite World Cup[]
Because Kyle qualified, he attended the 1st Annual Fortnite World Cup that took place from July 26-28, 2019, and competed for Solos that took place on the 28th. Kyle had the chance to play 6 matches against 99 other players who had also qualified. In the end, Kyle was 1st place with 59 points, almost doubling second-place winner psalm with 33 points. Kyle won $3,000,000.[5] He also had gained around 200% of exposure on his social medias, went from 44,000 YouTube subscribers to 159,000 subscribers that day. He also gained Twitter followers that day, from 31,000 followers to 156,000, and was also verified. On Twitch, he went from 76,000 followers to 120,000 that day.[6][7][8] 2 days later, he was invited to be interviewed by Jimmy Fallon.[9]
Hacked[]
Kyle's Twitter and Twitch were hacked hours after winning the World Cup. On Twitch, a user known as Percocet livestreamed on Kyle's Twitch channel, using a voice changer, and self promoted his Twitter account to get a follow off the Bugha Twitter.[10] He also hacked 100 gifted subscriptions to random streamers, which is approximately $600 per each.[11] His Twitter was also hacked, tweeting vulgar tweets and retweeted a tweet from Joseph (Percocet).[12] The Sentinels Management, an eSports clan Kyle is a part of, was on their way to restore his accounts.[13]
Fortnite Icon Skin[]
On July 19, 2021, Kyle announced his very own Icon Skin, a series of custom outfits based on a real person or celebrity. The outfit is designed to look like Kyle. His back bling also includes the same trophy design Kyle had won at the Fortnite World Cup in 2019, also including his pet dog- Zoey- inside the cup of the trophy. The pickaxes are dual-wielded knifes with the tag "zoey" on each. [14]
Swatted[]
On August 10, 2019, Kyle became a victim of swatting. The incident took place while livestreaming a Fortnite tournament. According to Kyle, multiple police officers were holding their guns, and the incident lasted around 10 minutes. The incident was defused after one of the police officers noticed who Kyle was, as they lived in the same neighborhood.[15] According to the dispatcher who received the hoax call, the caller claimed that Kyle shot his father with an AK-47, and claimed his mother was tied up in a garage.[16] It is currently unknown what punishment the caller is facing after the incident, but is believed that the caller is from Europe.[17]
Organizations[]
Kyle became a member of Sentinels on March 25, 2019. He represented the team during the World Cup and various other tournaments. Kyle announced he will leave the organization on December 29, 2022- which was in the middle of his contract- due to the organization no longer competing for Fortnite due to sponsorships.[18] On February 27, 2023, Kyle became a member of Dignitas.[19]
References[]
- ↑ https://heavy.com/games/2019/07/bugha-5-fast-facts-you-need-to-know/
- ↑ https://www.esportsearnings.com/players/56483-bugha-kyle-giersdorf
- ↑ https://twitter.com/Sentinels/status/1110258580169457664
- ↑ https://twitter.com/bugha/status/1117571545528979458
- ↑ https://twitter.com/ConvictEXE/status/1155603578632974337
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20190729150557/https://socialblade.com/youtube/channel/UCgIoEgOk3wzhhORNC9AbzhQ/monthly
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20190729150232/https://socialblade.com/twitter/user/bugha/monthly
- ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20190729150628/https://socialblade.com/twitch/user/bugha/monthly
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMlew5x8lFU
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARnRAbRYJ98
- ↑ https://twitter.com/NateHillTV/status/1155632218167042048
- ↑ https://www.dexerto.com/fortnite/fortnite-bugha-twitter-hacked-after-winning-world-cup-854889
- ↑ https://twitter.com/bugha/status/1155730385528995840
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnhaBLcjka4
- ↑ https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/13/us/fortnite-swatting-bugha-trnd/index.html
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epQ3Mag25CY
- ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/13/us/bugha-swatted-fortnite.html
- ↑ https://twitter.com/bugha/status/1608196320728174592
- ↑ https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dignitas-signs-fortnite-world-cup-champion-and-international-gaming-star-kyle-bugha-giersdorf-aiming-to-be-the-most-influential-organization-in-fortnite-301756533.html