Sidemen

Sidemen is a British YouTube channel founded in 2013 by seven creators including Olajide Olatunji and Simon Minter.

The hosts recorded video game sessions together before setting up their primary group channel in 2015. Harry Lewis joined the collective in 2014 after the initial six members established the group.

Regular uploads on the channel center on large-scale competitions, hide-and-seek games in stadiums, and travel challenges split between luxury budgets and budget limits of $100. Dating formats such as 20 women against one host generated widespread viewership. The channel received the Silver Creator Award and Gold Creator Award from YouTube in 2016 after passing 100,000 and 1 million subscribers. In December 2020, YouTube presented the Diamond Creator Award to the channel for passing 10 million subscribers, and the channel reached 20 million subscribers in November 2023.

Coronet Books published Sidemen: The Book in October 2016, which sold 26,436 copies in its first week and topped the United Kingdom non-fiction hardback chart. In June 2018, YouTube Premium released The Sidemen Show, a seven-episode series that filmed challenges in different international cities. The group launched their dedicated subscription service Side+ in September 2021 to distribute behind-the-scenes footage and extra material. In February 2024, Netflix released the documentary film The Sidemen Story, which documented the development of the group from online gaming to live events.

The inaugural Sidemen Charity Match took place in June 2016 at St Mary's Stadium in Southampton, raising over £110,000 for charity. In September 2023, the match moved to London Stadium and raised more than £2.4 million ($3 million) for organizations including the Teenage Cancer Trust. A controversy occurred in April 2023 when the channel removed a game-show video after a racial slur was spoken during recording, which led to a public apology and a one-week pause in uploads. In November 2021, the members opened their first physical restaurant location for the chicken chain Sides in London.