Alexandre “gAuLeS” Borba is one of the biggest and most enduring names in Counter-Strike and even as Counter-Strike: Global Offensive rides off into the sunset, he remains as big as ever.
gAuLeS may not be known to English-speaking fans, but he’s one of the biggest names in streaming. Though Americans, Canadians, and Europeans mostly sit atop Twitch when it comes to earnings, gAuLeS is the biggest exception. The Brazilian ranks among the biggest streamers on Twitch, which has let him become one of the biggest figures in all of Counter-Strike.
But who is gAuLeS and where did he come from? Here’s everything there is to know about the former Counter-Strike pro.
Who is gAuLeS?
gAuLeS is a Brazilian streamer and former Counter-Strike professional player. He ranks among the biggest streamers on Twitch in terms of earnings, standing as the 12th-highest-earning streamer according to the 2021 Twitch leak. Though he is mainly known for streaming these days, he has been a constant in the Brazilian Counter-Strike scene for years.
From 2001 to 2007, gAuLeS played for formidable South American team g3nerationX. He later moved into a coaching role with the original MIBR organization. From there he worked a variety of different roles in Counter-Strike, bouncing between coaching gigs, commentary, and working on the business end of the reformed g3nerationX organization.
He eventually settled into streaming on a full-time basis and enjoyed enormous success, helping him out of bankruptcy in 2017. Though personalities like Michael “shroud” Grzesiek and Jaryd “summit1g” Lazar pivoted from Counter-Strike into being popular variety streamers, gAuLeS stayed with the game that first brought him to fame. The overwhelming majority of his gaming on Twitch is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, both simulcasting esports events and playing himself.
Who is the biggest Brazilian streamer on Twitch?
gAuLeS is the biggest Brazilian streamer on Twitch by any measure. Though there are some formidable competitors in the region, gAuLeS reigns supreme in terms of viewership, income, and more.
The area where gAuLeS stands out the most is in the income department. In the 2021 Twitch leaks, he was the 12th-highest-earning streamer on Twitch in the world. gAuLeS took in $2,844,985.18 from Twitch subscriptions, Bit donations, and ad revenue across a 25-month stretch. This doesn’t include money he took in on other social media channels or through sponsorships and affiliate deals.
gAuLeS lags behind a few other Brazilian streamers in terms of his follower count. Alan “Alanzoka” Ferreira Pereira and Loud_Coringa both have higher follower counts, but neither came close to touching gAuLeS in terms of money made on Twitch.
Why is gAuLeS controversial?
gAuLeS has proven to be a controversial figure due to his blatant homerism for Brazilian CSGO teams. This has had ugly consequences, with internet mobs making death threats against players who take wins over prominent Brazilian opponents. This came despite the fact that he maintains an official partnership with ESL.
The most notable example of this came in 2020 when Nathan “leaf” Orf was accused by gAuLeS of cheating during a game against MIBR. leaf was 16 years old at the time and ultimately never faced any official investigation or punishment regarding the alleged cheating.
While gAuLeS apologized for this, he never stopped this sort of behavior. He was brought into the IEM Rio Major by ESL as a part of the event and faced criticism from fans and pundits for repeatedly echoing jingoistic talking points and behavior that interrupted the broadcast.
