Valkyrae addresses criticism directed at her following the Marvel Rivals Twitch Rivals controversy

YouTube and Twitch streamer Rachell “Valkyrae” has spoken out about the criticism she received following the Marvel Rivals Twitch Rivals drama. For those unaware, Twitch received backlash from prominent streamers and the online community after the live streaming platform allegedly changed the rules of the Marvel Rivals tournament a week prior.

According to Twitch streamer Bogur, the Twitch Rivals event was originally limited to two high-ranking players (Grandmaster and above) per team. However, the tournament organizers changed the rules to allow teams to include four professional/highly rated players.

Valkyrae was one of the popular personalities who expressed her displeasure with the situation and asked who organized the “garbage” event:

“Which Twitch staff should I talk to? I don’t understand how this happened. I actually need to say something. I waited five years to play at Twitch Rivals just for this to happen?! This is insane! Like, who planned this garbage?! Yeah, I want to see the messages.

During a live stream on January 19, 2025, the 100 Thieves co-owner responded to netizens’ criticism of her comments on the Marvel Rivals Twitch Rivals event. When told by her live audience that she had done nothing wrong under the circumstances, Valkyrae responded:

“‘You literally did nothing wrong.’ No, I know I didn’t do anything wrong. I just feel bad because some people think I did, and I wish I could say to everybody, ‘Listen, there’s more context. ‘ Like, it’s frustrating to see me being called a whining b**ch and the rules were changed because of me, I feel like everyone whined and then it’s my fault because of the way I whined over it, and I It probably shouldn’t have been like that, you know, aggro, because I forget that things get clipped and it’s going to be posted everywhere.”


Valkyrae Explains Why She Didn’t Host The Marvel Rivals Twitch Rivals Tournament, Says It Was The “Most Worn Out Thing” She’d Ever Seen

During the same live stream, Valkyrae explained why she was not hosting the Marvel Rivals Twitch Rivals event. While describing the tournament as the “worst thing” she had ever witnessed, the 33-year-old noted:

“The fact that they asked me to try out for Twitch Rivals and I said no because this is the most worn out thing I’ve ever seen. Maybe that shares some insight into how bad it is. Whether you’re a professional or not, how bad and inconvenient it was for everyone, well, maybe this will trigger a change, I don’t know.


Valkyrae made headlines in December 2025 when she responded to netizens who called her “controlling” for her actions on political Twitch streamer Hasan “HasanAbi’s” Just Chatting live stream.