Supercell CEO sorry for failure to acknowledge role of content creators in Clash Royale's success

• Twitch streamer Jynxzi had called out Ilkka Paananen for failure to recognise impact of content creators on Clash Royale's success.
• Supercell CEO has updated his blog post with an apology.

Supercell CEO Ilkka Paananen has apologised for failing to acknowledge the role that content creators played in Clash Royale’s surge in popularity last year.

The Supercell chief exec’s original annual blog post sparked controversy for crediting the team’s work on new features and campaigns, without specifically mentioning the influence content creators had in attracting new and old players into the game.

Twitch streamer Jynxzi took wrote on X that the lack of recognition was “probably the biggest spit in the face I’ve ever seen”. MrBeast responded to state: “I only started playing again because of you.”

“Don’t you dare take credit for 2025 being the best year that that game’s had since 2016,” said  Jynxzi during a Twitch stream. “Let’s not do that. Because now you’re f***ing rage-baiting.”

"I am sorry"

The blog post has now been updated as of February 12th with an apology from Paananen. A new section now states:

“Since this blog was posted on 10th February, I've seen the reaction to the Clash Royale section and I want to address it directly. In short, I failed to acknowledge the role that creators, pro players, and the broader community played in Clash Royale's resurgence. That was my mistake — no one else's — and it runs counter to everything I believe about the impact creators have on our games and our business. I am sorry.

“The intent was never to diminish anyone's contribution, but intent doesn't matter when the impact is real. I understand why it hurts, and that's on me.

“Throughout 2025, we saw creators self-organising tournaments, celebrating Royale through art and memes, and reminding millions of people around the world why Clash Royale is special. Creators like Jynxzi returned to the game with incredible passion, investing their own time, money, and energy into bringing Clash Royale back to cultural relevance — and introducing many new players, including some of the biggest names in streaming, to the game. That kind of love for Royale can't be taken for granted, and it deserves to be acknowledged loudly and clearly.

“Back to my original post now, but I wanted to address this head-on. Thank you — to all of you.”