Lex Veldhuis left Poker Stars

Jyco · Feb 15, 2026

Most likely, PokerStars wanted to keep exclusive contracts with Lex Veldhuis that only allowed him to stream on their platform. With PokerStars’ decline in recent years, he may have gotten tired of that and of not being able to compete in the best tournaments the way he can on GGPoker. Right now he’s streaming that site, but I’m not sure if he has a formal contract with them or if he’s just playing there because they offer the biggest daily tournaments and monthly series. It could be a mix of both, an opportunity to play tougher, more rewarding games and a chance to stay relevant as a content creator.

successlaw · Feb 22, 2026

Nice to see him live again on twitch but on GG poker tables

Snake2007 · Feb 22, 2026

Maybe he left Poker Stars for something better.

Brigistul · Feb 22, 2026

An important factor, mentioned by several sources, is that in recent years Lex has no longer been able to play legally on PokerStars due to regulations in the Netherlands. This affected his activity as a streamer because he couldn’t broadcast poker on the platform he represented.Although he didn’t say this was the reason for leaving, right after the split he started playing and streaming on GGPoker a platform he can legally play on from the Netherlands. This suggests that the legal restrictions on PokerStars were probably a major factor.

LUKADONCICMVP · Feb 23, 2026

worst streamer of all time and worst site of all time pokerstars.

GrannySmit77 · Feb 23, 2026

Pokerstars had been going downhill for a few years now. Pretty much since Daniel Negreanu left them, maybe even a bit before. Like any other business, if you don't innovate, improve and keep up with your competition, you will die a slow death. They can't even compare with GG, especially since GG affiliated with wsop. So, good for Lex.

machinm19 · Feb 23, 2026

I'm a bit late on the scene here but this is a massive loss for Stars. Lex is an amazing player and my favourite streamer, he has a legion of fans and he'll take many with him to another site I suspect.

shanest · Mar 2, 2026

at least he continues to stream.

ninocabral · Mar 2, 2026

He probably saw that it pays more to play on other sites than on PokerStar, the variation is very large.

miric007 · May 1, 2026

Pokerstars has been banned in Croatia for years. I switched to GG poker and it is much better than Pokerstars. Lex follows my example 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Poker Orifice · May 2, 2026

Is Lex even a winning player in online MTT's these days? If he is, why does he keep his player stats. hidden?

Lodestone · May 2, 2026

Poker Orifice said:
Is Lex even a winning player in online MTT's these days? If he is, why does he keep his player stats. hidden?

Who cares about tourney ROI when you can charge millions on an exclusive streaming contract? Lex used to pull big numbers a few years ago so I'm sure he could demand a pretty good contract. He must have a decent cash cushion or he'd be streaming on Kick lol

Poker Orifice · May 2, 2026

Lodestone said:
Who cares about tourney ROI when you can charge millions on an exclusive streaming contract? Lex used to pull big numbers a few years ago so I'm sure he could demand a pretty good contract. He must have a decent cash cushion or he'd be streaming on Kick lol

Perhaps not as good as he'd hoped for.

Some people watch streamers for purely entertainment value, others prefer to watch the guys who are winning &/or ones where they can learn from. Personally I don't watch any streamer who doesn't keep his game stats. visible.
I think your numbers are off on the exclusive streaming contract. I've heard he was getting between 200 - 400k from Stars (& maybe 300k from streaming revenue). Maybe my sources are wrong but I doubt it.

Lodestone · May 2, 2026

Poker Orifice said:
Perhaps not as good as he'd hoped for.

Some people watch streamers for purely entertainment value, others prefer to watch the guys who are winning &/or ones where they can learn from. Personally I don't watch any streamer who doesn't keep his game stats. visible.
I think your numbers are off on the exclusive streaming contract. I've heard he was getting between 200 - 400k from Stars (& maybe 300k from streaming revenue). Maybe my sources are wrong but I doubt it.

You definitely could be right. I'm surprised to hear he was only making low/mid 6 figures. If buyins were also being comped I could see that but otherwise for an exclusively contract that seems kinda bad.

I find most streamers incredibly annoying. Poker streamers complain about people getting the password and leaving but if there was anything worth sticking around for, I would.

Dnegs is the only one worth watching IMO. Most of the youtubers who 'made millions playing cash games' and are now selling courses were playing in private games where the average skill level is somewhere between 'coughing baby' and 'soulless rich addict who would be playing slots but wants to be praised and berated instead of flashy lights'.

Dnegs is the only streamer/ youtuber that has a proven record in televised cash games and tourneys that I know of. The way he shrugs off $2k bullets made me think he was freerolling pretty hard.

He's probably also making a lot more than Lex though to be fair.

rei signo · May 5, 2026

Matt_Burns88 said:
O PokerStars está em declínio há anos. Essa situação se agravou quando o Gigabyte entrou no mercado e passou a disputar ativamente a participação de mercado do PokerStars. O PokerStars, de forma arrogante, acreditou que o Gigabyte fracassaria e não fez nada para competir. O Gigabyte é, de longe, o maior site atualmente, e essa diferença só tende a aumentar.

A Stars precisa de uma reformulação completa, priorizando os clientes em vez dos lucros. Eles ainda têm o melhor software para clientes, de longe, mas isso não vai atrair clientes de volta. Reduzir as taxas e aprimorar o programa de recompensas é a ÚNICA maneira de recuperarem a fatia de mercado que perderam.

Last week, GGpoker had almost 1 million people on the site simultaneously, dominating!

rei signo · May 5, 2026

miric007 said:
O PokerStars está banido na Croácia há anos. Mudei para o GG Poker e é muito melhor que o PokerStars. O Lex segue meu exemplo 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

PS is the most charming, and all it takes is for the people in charge of the site to want it to become gigantic again! You always have to think big!

MAFNL16061986 · May 6, 2026

pokerstars is not a licneced poker game anymore in the netherlands same for partypoker the only one we can do for now is ggpoker rn

akgross · May 9, 2026

Now Lex Veldhuis will be an independent media player with a large playing field under his "personal brand," which includes his reputation, audience, content style, and everything that people associate with him, not with the platform.

RENEY444 · May 11, 2026

I had to leave Pokerstars long ago when the US legal system went after them .

Lex Veldhuis left Poker Stars

Jyco

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successlaw

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Snake2007

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Brigistul

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LUKADONCICMVP

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GrannySmit77

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machinm19

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shanest

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ninocabral

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miric007

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Poker Orifice

And Still...

Lodestone

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Poker Orifice

And Still...

Lodestone

Rock Star

rei signo

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rei signo

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MAFNL16061986

Rock Star

akgross

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