Who is the winner of ‘Survivor’ season 49? Everything about former news anchor Savannah Louie

NEED TO KNOW

• Savannah Louie won Survivor season 49

• The former journalist defeated her fellow contestants, Sophi Balerdi and Sage Ahrens-Nichols, at the final tribal council

• Louie and her ally Rizo Velovic have joined the all-star Survivor season 50 cast

Warning: Survivor season 49 spoilers ahead!

Another Sole Survivor has been crowned!

After 18 castaways landed in Fiji from the Mamanuca Islands during season 49 Survivorthey were voted out one by one until one person took home the $1 million prize. Savannah Louie won, defeating 17 competitors, including the other two final castaways, Sophi Balerdi and Sage Ahrens-Nichols.

The former journalist defeated her former allies in a 5–2–1 jury vote. The final three participants marked the first time since 2014 that they were all women. Meanwhile, Louie also made history with her challenge skills, as she tied the record for most individual immunity challenges won by a woman in a single season.

During her time in the game, Louie was known for her strategic gameplay and challenge dominance. After entering the merger as underdogs alongside Balerdi and Rizo Velovic, Louie and her allies eliminated the majority alliance.

In addition to recently competing on Survivor season 49, Louie was also selected as one of two contestants who would compete on the all-star next season, Survivor 50: In the hands of the fans. Her ally and fan favorite, Velovic, was the second contestant to make the cut.

Here you will find everything you need to know about the Survivor season 49 champion, Savannah Louie.

She is a former television journalist

Before competing in the 49th season of SurvivorLouie worked as a radio journalist for almost ten years. She studied journalism at Southern Methodist University before graduating in 2016. The California native landed her first major news job at the local Fox affiliate in Knoxville, Tennessee, according to her LinkedIn.

Louie subsequently took on anchor positions in San Antonio and Saint Louis. In 2021, she moved to Atlanta and joined the Atlanta News First team as a full-time news anchor, according to her LinkedIn.

However, in September 2024, Louie announced that she would be leaving Atlanta News First and saying goodbye to her journalism career. She explained in an Instagram post that she was leaving to pursue a career “with a better work-life balance.”

“My decision to pursue journalism was fueled by an intention to make the world a better place,” she explained. “We cannot promote change in our community without being aware of WHAT is happening in our community.”

According to her LinkedIn, she now works as a marketing content specialist at Hyperdrive Leadership.

Since Survivor Season 49 wrapped up, Louie has created a strong presence on social media and regularly posts videos about her preparation for the competition, the application process and reflections on the experience.

She has been in a relationship with Brandon Stiles since 2024

In her personal life, Louie has been dating software engineer Brandon Stiles since August 2024, when he first posted about her on Instagram.

“First trip to San Francisco with @sahhvz was 👌🏼,” he wrote. In the comments section, she replied, “maybe 👍🏼.”

Since then, the couple has traveled to Croatia, New York City and Mystic, Connecticut, according to their social media accounts.

She won four individual immunities

Throughout her time SurvivorLouie was a competitive competitor. She dominated in individual immunity challenges, taking the chain an impressive four times. She tied the record with another woman Survivor legends like Rachel LaMont, Jenna Morasca, Kelly Wiglesworth, Kim Spradlin and Chrissy Hofbeck.

In addition to her physical strength, Louie also played a strategic game, managing to play a role in eliminating six players with whom she was not on the same page after the merger. During the final tribal council, Louie doubled down on her gameplay when judge Kristina Mills asked her to name a family member for each of the judges. Louie admitted she wouldn’t be able to do that, but was adamant that personal connections weren’t part of her strategy, which many judges respected.

She was part of the “Tres Leches” alliance.

As the game became more serious, Louie found close cooperation in her alliance with Velovic and Balerdi, which they nicknamed the “Tres Leches” alliance. Their alliance became one of the most solid of the group, dominating with physical strength and voting unity.

However, their alliance broke down when Balerdi opted to move Ahrens-Nichols into the final three, leaving Velovic and Louie to battle each other for the final third spot. Louie won the fire-making competition and Velovic was sent to the jury.

She will continue to compete Survivor season 50

In addition to winning the $1 million and the title of Sole Survivor in season 49, Louie was also selected to compete in the highly anticipated Survivor season 50 cast.

Both she and her ally, Velovic, were named as the final two castaways among the returning 24 stars. Louie and Velovic had just ten days to recover at home before returning to Fiji for filming Survivor 50: In the hands of the fans, per Entertainment weekly.

Survivor 50 – which will also star fan favorites like Mike White, Jenna Lewis-Dougherty, Cirie Fields and Ozzy Lusth – has already filmed and is set to premiere in February 2026. On the occasion of the festive season, Survivor lets fans vote on various aspects of the game, from the latest challenges to hidden immunity idols.

“From the very first season Survivor has evolved. Now, for our 50th season, it’s time for the next evolution,” said host Jeff Probst in an April 2025 press release. “Survivor 50: In the hands of the fans is unlike anything we’ve done before. I can’t wait to see what the fans choose for our returning players.”

Read the original article about People