Survivor 49 comes to an end on Wednesday, Dec. 17, with the season finale and winner reveal. We've all been watching and looking forward to this moment all season, but there's been a lot of chatter about the winner of the new season since the Survivor 50 cast reveal back in May 2025.
Back then, we learned two players from Survivor 49 would compete on Survivor 50: In the Hands of the Fans, which filmed right after Survivor 49 in Fiji last summer. It was reported who those players would be, and that's when the rumors about the winner of season 49 started to pick up steam.
Then, we saw a reveal on social media that allegedly included the names of the full jury and Final 3.
There are potential spoilers ahead for the Survivor 49 finale and potentially the Survivor 50 cast! This is like a Beware Advantage. Proceed at your own risk.
The Survivor 49 Final 3 is rumored to be Savannah, Rizo, and Sophi
The Survivor 49 Final 3 is rumored to be Savannah Louie, Rizo Velovic, and Sophi Balerdi.
Earlier this season, a leak of the Survivor 49 logo with the player signatures leaked on social media. It's tradition in the new era, and possibly the older eras, for the jury members and the Final 3, including the winner to sign the banner for the season. Well, eagle-eyed fans were able to read all the names of the jury. The alleged Final 3 of Survivor 49 is also surrounded by a heart.
The other player names on that banner are:
- MC Chukwujekwu
- Steven Ramm
- Sophie Segreti
- Nate Moore
- Jawan Pitts
- Kristina Mills
- Sage Ahrens-Nichols
- Alex Moore
You have all the jury members and Final 3 on that banner, so this appears to be an accurate.
Heading into Tribal Council in episode 12, though, I did not see the latest twist coming. I thought, for sure, Sophi was going to steal Rizo's idol and vote him out. I do think Steven was a bigger threat to win than the audience realized. He's played a great social game and his allies make up the entire jury for the most part. But, the move was right there for Sophi to take it, but she didn't.
That twist definitely set up for an interesting finale. There are really only three players with a realistic chance of winning: Savannah, Rizo, and Sage.
Savannah Louie is rumored to be the Survivor 49 winner
We have to go a little further back for this winner rumor that feels like it holds a lot of weight. So, as mentioned, we know that two players from Survivor 49 will be on Survivor 50. Those players were revealed to be Rizo and Savannah.
Then, the tribes for Survivor 50 also leaked online via Inside Survivor, and we learned that Dee Valladares, the Survivor 45 winner, and Kyle Fraser, the Survivor 48 winner, start on different tribes. Will there only be two winners on this season? Or, will they have one winner on each tribe?
Well, Rizo, allegedly, begins Survivor 50 on the same tribe as Kyle, while Savannah begins Survivor 50 on a tribe without Dee and Kyle. So, the running theory is that Savannah wins Survivor 49 and joins Dee and Kyle as the three winners participating in Survivor 50.
It's unclear, at this point, if these theories are accurate, but there's a good chance they are. There are many others online claiming that Savannah wins this season without offering proof. While we have to take them with a grain of salt, it is very interesting that these theories, lately, have been pretty accurate.
On top of that, it also feels like Savannah is getting a really good edit this season. We've seen her journey from the very beginning, and when she was betrayed by Jawan and Sage, we spent a lot of time with Savannah. It's not a clear-cut thing, but there's a nice arc for Savannah here from Day 1 to a lot of adversity to triumph.
Again, these are all just rumors! Outside of the jury reveal, this might all be fake. Sophi, Rizo, and Savannah might have a heart around their names because they are the Tres Leches alliance? I don't know.
We'll find out just how true these rumors are in the Survivor 49 finale on Wednesday, Dec. 17, on CBS and Paramount+. Stay tuned for more information about the season.