Issues with embedding Twitch stream player using PHP variables

[benmoore]

I’m running into trouble when trying to embed a Twitch stream player on my site using dynamic PHP content.

The player works perfectly when I hardcode the channel name directly in JavaScript. However, when I try to use a PHP variable to set the channel name dynamically, the stream fails to load completely.

Here’s my working code with a static channel name:

<script src="https://player.twitch.tv/js/embed/v2.js"></script>
<div id="stream-container"></div>
<script type="text/javascript">
    var config = {
        width: '100%',
        height: 480,
        channel: "teststreamer"
    };
    var streamPlayer = new Twitch.Player("stream-container", config);
    streamPlayer.setVolume(0.5);
</script>

And here’s the problematic version using PHP:

<script src="https://player.twitch.tv/js/embed/v2.js"></script>
<div id="stream-container"></div>
<script type="text/javascript">
    var config = {
        width: '100%',
        height: 480,
        channel: "<?php $streamerName ?>"
    };
    var streamPlayer = new Twitch.Player("stream-container", config);
    streamPlayer.setVolume(0.5);
</script>

I’m pretty new to mixing PHP with JavaScript like this, so I might be making a basic mistake. Any ideas what could be going wrong?

[Oscar64]

You’re missing the echo statement in your PHP syntax. When you write <?php $streamerName ?>, you’re not outputting anything to JavaScript. Change it to <?php echo $streamerName; ?> instead. I hit this exact issue building a gaming site last year - JavaScript gets an empty string because PHP isn’t echoing anything, so the Twitch embed fails silently. Also add some validation to check the variable has a valid channel name before embedding. Learned that one the hard way when bad user input broke embeds on my site.

[Mike71]

yeah, classic php mistake. you’re missing the echo like oscar mentioned, but also check that your variable’s actually set before this code runs. i’ve had this break when the php variable’s undefined - you’ll get weird javascript errors. drop a var_dump($streamerName) above your script tag to see what value it’s actually passing through.

[DancingFox]

Watch out for JSON encoding your PHP variables too. Fixed the echo but special characters in channel names will still break your JavaScript. Hit this issue with channels that had quotes or backslashes in the metadata. Use json_encode() around your PHP variable: channel: <?php echo json_encode($streamerName); ?> instead of raw echo. It handles escaping automatically and saves you from debugging nightmare syntax errors. Check your browser console for JavaScript errors - they’ll show you exactly what’s breaking when the embed won’t load.

[Samuel87]

Beyond the syntax fixes mentioned, handle the async nature of the Twitch player properly. I’ve seen the embed container not be ready when JavaScript runs, especially with dynamic content. Wrap your player initialization in document ready or add a small delay. Also check your PHP variable has exactly what you expect - no extra whitespace or encoding issues. I spent hours debugging a similar issue only to find trailing spaces in the database were breaking the API calls. Twitch embed is strict about channel name formatting.

[Laura219]

heads up - twitch embeds are case sensitive. your php variable needs to match the exact capitalization of the channel name on twitch. mine broke because i was pulling lowercase usernames from the database but twitch expected proper case.