While watching VALORANT Champions Berlin today, popular streamer and former CS:GO pro Shroud was asked by several viewers if he would ever consider returning to professional play through either a coaching or player position.
Quickly denying any possibility of making a comeback to the esports scene, Shroud elaborated on his answer. “You guys got to realize, I don’t like work. That’s why I stream,” the Canadian streamer said. “I don’t like work. Working sucks. So if there’s anything that requires some work and some effort, I’m probably not going to do it.”
With his signature uncanny candidness, Shroud refuted that streaming is work itself. “Streaming is work? No, it’s not fucking work—it’s a god damn joke,” the FPS star said. “Look, I’m sitting here doing nothing. I’m literally doing nothing.”
Shroud went on to discuss that even his auxiliary operations adjacent to his streaming career don’t constitute as work, either. Referencing his merchandise line, Shroud downplayed his involvement. “That wasn’t a lot of work for me though, I just choose. A lot of mock-ups were drawn and I said ‘yes’ or I said ‘no,'” he explained. “That’s not really a lot of work.”
Shroud was a CS:GO pro from 2013 to 2018. His most notable achievements came from his time on Cloud9’s roster. Since retiring, Shroud has dedicated his career to streaming. Despite partnering with companies such as Logitech, Riot Games, and delivering his own merchandise line, it seems like he’s reluctant to refer to either his career as a professional player or streamer as work by any metric.
