Royal experts inexplicably linked to casino brands have been quoted more than 100 times in news articles about Harry and Meghan.
The first articles appeared in 2022 but they have appeared more regularly in recent months.
They appear be the result of PR campaigns aiming to secure lucrative editorial mentions and links for the gambling outlets – which are both valuable for SEO purposes.
Casino brands such as Betfair, Smooth Spins and Cafe Casino send out commentary by royal experts such as Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell, body language expert Darren Stanton, celebrity psychic Inbaal Honigman and lip-reader Nicola Hickling.
Other experts lending their voice to online casino brands include PR man Nick Ede (who knew Meghan in her Suits days) and ex-royal butler Grant Harrold.
For casino brands, links in sites with high domain reputation such as newspapers offer a valuable boost for casinos in Google search results – potentially worth millions.
The articles have featured in dozens of titles – most prolifically the Daily Express, which has featured at least 20 articles from casino-affiliated experts.
Website editors say they decide whether or not to use a story on the basis of providing a good story for readers.
Other publications which have featured the articles include The Independent, the Mirror, New York Post, Oxford Mail, Entertainment Daily, Yahoo News, OK, Edinburgh Live and the Daily Record.
For example, in the story ‘Princess Kate’s Quiet Ability to Make “People Feel At Ease” Is Her Royal Superpower, Says Body Language Expert’ in Marie Claire, Stanton analyses Kate Middleton’s body language while “Speaking on behalf of UK online slots provider Betfair Casino.”
A press release seen by Press Gazette and sent out to national media offers commentary on Meghan’s 45th birthday in the name of Betfair casino.
The release says: “Body language expert shares his thoughts on the Duchess of Sussex as she approaches her 45th birthday
“Ahead of Meghan Markle’s 45th birthday tomorrow, body language expert Darren Stanton has opened up on how the Duchess of Sussex has shown herself to be ‘truly happy in both her professional and personal life’.
“Speaking on behalf of Betfair Casino, Darren reveals that while Meghan may have displayed signs of ‘nerves’ during her early years in the Royal Family, she has always maintained a ‘strong sense of authenticity and determination’.
A spokesperson for Betfair told Press Gazette: “To clarify, there is no connection between Betfair and Harry and Meghan. As part of the ongoing and varied marketing campaigns that we run, working with an external agency, we cover a wide range of topics designed to keep us in topical conversations.”
They continued: “Betfair is one of the biggest betting brands in the UK and we are well-known for providing odds on all sorts of topical events, not just sports, including politics, current affairs and entertainment.
“Supported by agency partners and Darren Stanton, an experienced body language and behavioural analyst, we create content across a wide range of topics linked to these areas. For example, we’ve offered prices and markets on royal baby names in the past, so we seek to be part of such conversations online as part of our brand and marketing campaigns. Elsewhere, we use ambassadors and talent to co-create content around sports, such as Alan Shearer during the World Cup.
“These content campaigns play a key part in keeping Betfair associated with these topical and sporting conversations, and is standard practice across many other industries.”
Vince Nero, an SEO and PR expert at digital PR platform Buzzstream, told Press Gazette that securing links to casinos is difficult – and lucrative.
He said: “Links to casino sites are notoriously difficult for a mix of reasons: the UK’s strict laws around gambling and advertising, which could lead to legal trouble, and Google references them in their spam policies, which could lead to traffic loss.
“So sites would rather not even deal with it than risk the repercussions.
“When you look on link marketplaces, those are typically the more expensive ones (along with crypto and weed/CBD/vapes) for those reasons.”
A Casino.org spokesperson said: “There is no personal relationship between Casino.org and the Royal Family, or with any of the public figures and celebrities we talk about.
“As a casino and wider entertainment brand, we cover an array of topics tangential to our core audience. This can include celebrity and showbiz, and stretch as far as the Royal Family, especially considering how popular they are to bet on and the prediction markets growth in these areas.
“We coordinate with external talent agencies to facilitate quotes such as the ones you’ve referenced. You’ll see us partnering with plenty of lip readers, body language experts, and even astrologists to support our wider entertainment content.”
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