EliasN97 is now one of the big ones on Twitch. But the passionate soccer player is also active as a successful entrepreneur away from the streaming platform.
Berlin – EliasN97 has been playing football all his life. Whether as an attacking midfielder on the field or with the controller in hand while playing FIFA 23, EliasN97 puts the round in the square every day. A large audience on Twitch and YouTube has been watching him since 2020 at the latest. He is one of the most successful streamers in Germany. Born in Berlin, he is also very active as an entrepreneur today and has founded his own football club and a clothing label.
| names | Elias Nerlich, Elias N97, Eligella, Eli |
| Date of birth | 12/10/1997 |
| Place of birth and residence | Berlin |
| size | 1.80 m |
| Twitch followers | over 1,200,000 (as of October 2022) |
| YouTube Subscribers | over 1,060,000 (as of October 2022) |
EliasN97: An injury got him into esports and then Twitch
EliasN97 has actually been playing FIFA for a long time, but it wasn’t until he was bedridden in 2016 due to a fractured fibula that his talent for football simulation could really develop. He qualified for the FUT Champions Cup in FIFA 18 and has been under contract with Hertha BSC as an e-sportsman since 2018. During this time, in addition to e-sports, he also expanded his YouTube channel, which he developed in cooperation with Hertha BSC. Before EliasN97 ever streamed on Twitch, he already had 200,000 subscribers on YouTube.
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In two years, EliasN97 will become the largest Fifa streamer in Germany
At the beginning of the pandemic in April 2020, EliasN97 started streaming on Twitch. He not only played Fifa, but also games that were popular at the time, such as Among Us and Fall Guys. He participated in MontanaBlack and TryMacs streamer tournaments and interacted with his audience in the ‘Just Chatting’ category.
EliasN97 is a Twitch Streamer, Youtuber, Footballer and Entrepreneur. © Focus/dpa
Because EliasN97 already had a community and his honest manner was well received, his number of followers rose rapidly. At the end of 2020, when EliasN97 streamed the then new FIFA 21, his average viewership rose to over 20,000. Today he has over a million followers on Twitch and YouTube (as of October 2022). EliasN97 is so influential with his streams that the word “doer” he uses a lot made it into the Youth Word 2022 selection.
Elias N97 also loves football away from Twitch and YouTube
While his Fifa career has been extremely successful in recent years, EliasN97 has repeatedly struggled with injury-related absences in real football. Because of this, and because he preferred to invest his time in the more promising streaming, he gave up his dream of a professional career.
I’m not in great shape anymore, but now I have earnings in Mario Kart.
Because he didn’t want to give up real football completely, he founded the football club Delay Sports Club with his colleague Sidney Friede, which has been playing in the district league C since 2022. EliasN97 was back on the pitch for this in September 2022.
EliasN97 is a former FIFA Pro, Twitch Streamer, Soccer Fan and Eligella Cup Soccer Tournament Host. (Archive image) © Eibner-Pressefoto/EXPA/Huter via www.imago-images.de
Of course, the Delay Sports Club quickly became the Berlin football club with the most followers on Instagram. In contrast, EliasN97 was recently at loggerheads with FIFA 22 and EA and stopped playing Fifa Ultimate Team because, in his opinion, the game lost its appeal and became too simplistic. With Fifa 23, however, the streamer got back on board.
First a streamer, then a successful entrepreneur
In addition to the football club Delay Sports Club, EliasN97 is a shareholder and founder of numerous other companies. Again with Sidney Friede, he founded the clothing label Elevate Clothing in 2020, which is known for its neck pillows.
What is the Eligella Cup?
Perhaps EliasN97’s most famous project besides streaming is the Eligella Cup. He has been organizing the Fifa tournament regularly on Twitch since 2021 and was recently able to record over 125,000 viewers in one stream. The Real-Life Eligella Cup 2 even made it to the Audi Dome in Munich and was not broadcast on Twitch but on RTL+, thus attracting the attention of traditional media as well. In the sold-out hall, a wide variety of Twitch streamers played for victory in the indoor soccer tournament.
In 2021, EliasN97 became a shareholder in the e-sports team Focus. A year later, he and Sidney Friede launched the vitamin water Vitavate. He also founded a fitness app and is an Adidas brand ambassador. As you can see, EliasN97 is not only active in Fifa and on Twitch, but also as an entrepreneur.
