On the final day of the Fortnite World Cup, Kyle "Bugha" Giersdorf was the first solo participant introduced at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York.
The then-16-year-old smiled sheepishly, a small gesture in comparison to some of the antics of his competitors, nodding as a burst of pyrotechnics sounded behind him.
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Bugha had played in online tournaments before, but the Fortnite World Cup was his first offline event.
It was a whirlwind of a day. Bugha, the first player to qualify for the World Cup out of North America, racked up eliminations in each game and played aggressively. He jumped out to an early lead in points, and Brandon Phan, the digital marketing manager for Sentinels, looked on in excitement.
He'd been there from the time Bugha signed on with Sentinels as a pro player and helped guide him through interviews, the buildup to the World Cup and managing the sudden interest in a kid from suburban Pennsylvania. His fists clenched as he watched Bugha make his way through the final round. Just stay alive. Just stay alive.
Is this going to happen? Phan thought.
One player stood in the way of Bugha bringing home a $3 million prize: Harrison "Psalm" Chang, the only competitor close enough in points to have a chance of winning. But just as the nature of Fortnite dictates, there was no climactic showdown between the two. Williams "Zayt" Aubin eliminated Psalm, and Phan screamed in delight.
It was all but over.
It would be another five minutes until Bugha was eliminated. He finished fifth overall in that match, more than enough in placement and eliminations to claim the World Cup prize. As the final participants were eliminated, Bugha smiled, removing his headphones and leaning back in his chair. A camera crew was already waiting behind him.
Confetti showered over his PC setup. Bugha threw his arms up in the air and shook his head, laughing in what looked like disbelief.
The morning of July 28, 2019, Kyle "Bugha" Giersdorf was an average 16-year-old kid who was really good at Fortnite. By the time the sun set, he was a multimillionaire.
Kyle "Bugha" Giersdorf went from a 16-year-old Fortnite competitor to an appearance on The Tonight Show following his victory at the Fortnite World Cup in 2019. Andrew Lipovsky/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
It's a dreary February day, the sky spitting half-rain, half-snow, when Bugha and his father, Glenn Giersdorf, visit the ESPN campus in Connecticut. They're led through a maze of hallways that connect each building and meet me at the end of another long hallway leading into the cafeteria.
Bugha, about seven months removed from winning $3 million at the Fortnite World Cup, is an unassuming teenager. Dressed comfortably in a sweatshirt and jeans, he holds a bottle of chocolate milk that he fidgets with more than he drinks from while talking. He wears a half-smile that almost never leaves his face, and he is not overly quiet, but certainly not loud. Frequently, Bugha defaults to his father, asking him questions when he doesn't remember specific events in his childhood, but also pushes back against his dad when he disagrees with the result.
No one gives Bugha a second look. Although he ran through the late-night talk show circuit after winning the Fortnite World Cup and appeared in a Super Bowl commercial that aired just a few nights before his visit, no one seems to notice that this specific teenager is the Fortnite World Cup champion. Bugha, now 17, is the less-known face behind a story just about everyone knows.
Video games themselves have been mainstream for a while. Professional video game players and tournaments have existed for decades. Yet the latter has never been more in the U.S. public consciousness than today, and Bugha's Fortnite World Cup prize pool has a lot to do with this.
Bugha on the different upgrades he's done to his setupKyle "Bugha" Giersdorf stuns Arda Ocal when he tells him that he hasn't upgraded his setup yet since winning the World Cup.
Like most battle royale-style games, competitive Fortnite has a lull before everything explodes in a burst of activity. In an instant, Bugha went from a good Fortnite player whom other Fortnite players knew to the default ambassador for professional esports athletes in the United States. This sudden popularity has led to everything from starring in Super Bowl commercials to having SWAT team members lined up outside his bedroom door due to a fake police call.
"He used to be a lot more social with his friends," Giersdorf adds, shooting a pointed look across the table at his son. "They'd go out to restaurants, go to high school football games, stuff like that, and some of that stuff has taken a hit because he's now streaming more."
Giersdorf admits he wishes Bugha would go out with his friends a bit more rather than spending nearly all of his time with friends online.
"Just go out and do something stupid," his father suggests. "Be a teenager."
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