Ryan Mitchell

G’day! I’m Ryan Mitchell, and I’ve been knee-deep in the online casino industry for the past 15 years. Started k9win Casinos back in 2019 because honestly, I got sick of seeing Aussie punters getting shafted by dodgy casino reviews that were basically just paid ads disguised as “honest opinions.”

Look, I’m not gonna bulls**t you. I’ve made mistakes, lost money at casinos myself (we’ll get to that), and learned the hard way what separates a top-tier casino from absolute garbage. That’s exactly why I created this site.

My Experience in the iGaming Industry

Been doing this since 2010. Started as a content writer at Casino.org making maybe $45k a year, writing about pokies I’d never played and bonuses I didn’t understand. Fast forward to now, and I’ve reviewed over 500 online casinos, tested thousands of games, and probably wasted more hours on customer support chats than I’d like to admit.

Worked my way up through pretty much every role you can think of in this industry. Content manager, compliance analyst, senior reviewer, product strategist… you name it. Spent three years at Betsson Group in their compliance department, which was honestly the best education I could’ve asked for. You learn real quick what makes a casino legit when you’re dealing with licensing requirements and regulatory audits.

Kinda burnt out around 2018 after a stint at Better Collective. Great company, don’t get me wrong, but I wanted to do something more… authentic? Less corporate bulls**t, more real talk.

My Areas of Expertise

Online Casino Reviews & Analysis

This is my bread and butter. I’ve personally tested and reviewed hundreds of online casinos operating in Australia and internationally. Not just playing a few spins and calling it a day. I’m talking full deep dives into licensing, game portfolios, payout speeds, customer service quality (the real test, honestly), and whether their terms and conditions are fair or full of sneaky clauses.

Payment Methods & Banking

Spent two years obsessing over this stuff at AskGamblers. Which e-wallets actually work for Aussies? Why do some casinos take three bloody weeks to process a withdrawal? How do you avoid getting stung by conversion fees? I’ve tested pretty much every payment method available, from POLi and PayID to crypto wallets and good old bank transfers.

Responsible Gambling & Player Protection

This one’s personal. Watched a mate lose his house to pokies back in 2015. Since then, I’ve made it my mission to understand addiction triggers, self-exclusion programs, and how casinos (should) protect vulnerable players. Did a certification course through Gambling Therapy and regularly attend Responsible Gambling Council webinars.

Sports Betting & Odds Analysis

Not just casino games. I’ve been punting on AFL and cricket since I was at uni. Worked briefly with SlotsTemple on their sports betting vertical. Know how to read odds, spot value bets, and recognize when bookies are taking the p**s.

Content Strategy & SEO

Yeah, I’m a bit of a nerd about this stuff. Taught myself SEO back in 2012 because I wanted my articles to actually get read. Did a bunch of courses through Moz Academy and SEMrush. These days I split my time between reviewing casinos and figuring out how to rank for competitive keywords without selling my soul.

Timeline: Key Milestones

2005 – Started Bachelor of Commerce at University of Western Australia

2008 – Graduated with honours, majored in Finance and Marketing

2009 – Lost $800 playing online pokies (first lesson learned the hard way)

2010 – Landed first job at Casino.org as junior content writer

2012 – Promoted to senior writer, started specializing in Australian market

2014 – Joined Casinomeister as content manager

2015 – Moved to Betsson Group’s compliance team in Malta for 18 months

2016 – Completed Introduction to iGaming certification

2017 – Returned to Australia, joined Better Collective as senior analyst

2018 – Attended ICE London and SiGMA conferences, made key industry connections

2019 – Founded k9win Casinos (named after my first kelpie, RIP)

2020 – Survived lockdowns by testing every online casino known to mankind

2021 – Site hit 100k monthly visitors, hired first team member

2022 – Spoke at Australian Gaming Expo about responsible gambling

2023 – Launched casino comparison tools and calculator features

2024 – Expanded into New Zealand and Canadian markets

2025 – Currently working on AI-powered casino matching system (yeah, I know, everyone’s doing AI now)

Education & Professional Development

University of Western Australia

Studied at UWA from 2005 to 2008. Bachelor of Commerce with a double major in Finance and Marketing. Graduated with honours, which sounds impressive but really just means I pulled a lot of all-nighters at Ref Library and drank way too much cheap coffee at Tav.

Chose commerce because I wanted to understand money. How it moves, why people spend it, what makes them take risks. Little did I know I’d end up applying all that knowledge to online gambling, but here we are.

Professional Certifications & Courses

Look, I’m a big believer in never stopping learning. This industry changes faster than Australian weather, so you’ve gotta keep up or get left behind.

iGaming Academy: Completed their Introduction to iGaming course in 2016. Covered everything from game mechanics to regulatory frameworks. Bit basic for someone already in the industry, but filled in some gaps.

Responsible Gambling Certification: Did this through Gambling Therapy in 2017. Learned about cognitive behavioural approaches to problem gambling, early warning signs, and how to actually help people instead of just ticking boxes.

SEO & Content Marketing: Self-taught mostly, but invested in courses from Moz, SEMrush, and Ahrefs. Also did HubSpot’s content marketing certification because why not.

Data Analytics: Took a Google Analytics certification in 2019. Needed to understand what the hell all those numbers meant and how to actually use data to improve the site.

Year-by-Year Professional Journey

2010-2012: Casino.org

First proper job in iGaming. Started as a junior writer making bugger all money but learning heaps. Wrote about everything: slot reviews, casino bonuses, payment methods, gambling laws. My editor was this bloke from the UK who’d tear apart my drafts and make me rewrite them five times. Annoying as hell, but taught me how to write properly.

Got promoted to senior writer in 2012 after I basically rewrote their entire Australian section. Finally someone who actually understood the Aussie market, y’know?

2014-2015: Casinomeister

Moved to Casinomeister because they offered me content manager role and decent pay bump. Learned a ton about casino accreditation programs and what actually makes a casino trustworthy. Bryan (the founder) is a bit of a legend in this space, super strict about ethics.

This is where I really started to understand the difference between affiliate marketing and actual journalism. Spoiler: most casino review sites are just thinly-veiled ads.

2015-2017: Betsson Group

Took a massive leap and moved to Malta to work in Betsson’s compliance department. Sarah thought I was mental (she was probably right), but it was the best career move I ever made.

Spent 18 months dealing with licensing applications, regulatory audits, and responsible gambling implementations. Sounds boring as bat s**t, but you learn exactly how casinos operate from the inside. What corners they cut, what they take seriously, how they handle player complaints.

Came back to Perth in late 2016 because honestly, we missed home. Malta’s great for a holiday, not so much for living long-term.

2017-2018: Better Collective

Joined Better Collective as a senior analyst. Good company, smart people, but very corporate. Spent most of my time in meetings talking about KPIs and conversion rates rather than actually helping players.

Did some cool data analysis projects though. Built a casino rating algorithm that actually worked (unlike some of the dodgy ones I’d seen). But yeah, started feeling like just another cog in the machine.

Attended ICE London in 2018, which was mental. Think 30,000 gambling industry people in one place, all trying to sell each other stuff. Met some good contacts though, including a couple of guys who run CasinoGuru. Top blokes.

2019-Present: k9win Casinos

Alright, so here’s where I went rogue and started my own thing.

Named it k9win after my first dog, a kelpie called Kane (get it? K9?). He died in 2018 and I was pretty cut up about it. Figured if I was gonna build something, might as well honour the good boy who sat next to me through countless hours of writing s**t casino reviews.

First year was tough. Built the site myself (thanks YouTube tutorials), wrote all the content, did all the testing. Sarah kept our finances afloat while I earned basically nothing. Ate a lot of two-minute noodles that year.

But slowly, it grew. Started ranking for some competitive keywords. Got my first affiliate payment that actually covered rent (f**k yeah!). Hired my mate Tom to help with content in 2021.

2022 was when things really took off. Got invited to speak at the Australian Gaming Expo about responsible gambling practices. Felt like I’d finally made it, y’know? Not just some guy writing casino reviews, but someone people actually listened to.

These days we’re a team of five. Still small, still independent, still focused on actually helping Aussie punters rather than just maximizing affiliate commissions.

Conference Appearances & Industry Involvement

Not gonna lie, I used to hate conferences. Bunch of people in suits drinking overpriced beer and pretending to care about “innovation” while really just looking for deals.

But they’re actually useful for keeping up with industry trends and calling out dodgy operators face-to-face.

ICE London 2018 & 2023: Massive iGaming conference. Went in 2018 as a nobody, came back in 2023 as a speaker. Talked about the Australian regulatory landscape and why so many casinos get it wrong.

SiGMA 2019 & 2024: Malta-based conference. Great for networking with European operators. Also great for hangovers.

Australian Gaming Expo 2022: This one meant the most. Home crowd, talking about responsible gambling in Australia. Actually felt like I was making a difference rather than just promoting casinos.

Affiliate World 2023: Dubai. Hot as f**k, but learned heaps about the business side of affiliate marketing. Realized I was leaving money on the table by not optimizing certain things (but also realized I didn’t want to become one of those scummy affiliates who’ll promote anything for a commission).

My Philosophy on Casino Reviews

Look, I’ll be straight with you. Most casino review sites are absolute garbage. They rank casinos based on who pays the highest commission, not who’s actually best for players. I’ve seen sites give 5-star ratings to casinos with month-long withdrawal times and shady terms.

That’s not what we do here.

I test every casino I review. Deposit my own money (or Tom’s, if I can convince him). Play the games. Test the customer support at weird hours. Actually read the terms and conditions (yeah, I’m that guy). Request withdrawals to see how long they really take.

Sometimes casinos offer me higher commissions to rank them better. I tell them to get f**ked. Well, maybe not in those exact words, but you get the idea. This industry needs more transparency and less bulls**t. That’s what I’m trying to provide.

Life Outside of Casinos

Because yeah, there is more to life than staring at slot machines all day (shocking, I know).

Sarah and I have been together for eight years. We met at a mate’s BBQ in 2017, right after I got back from Malta. She’s a physio, which is good because sitting at a desk reviewing casinos all day absolutely wrecks your back.

We’ve got two kelpies, Max and Ruby. They’re basically our kids. Take them down to Cottesloe Beach most mornings before I start work. Best part of my day, honestly.

I’m massively into AFL. Lifelong Fremantle supporter (yes, I know we’re hopeless, you don’t need to remind me). Still go to games when I can, though these days I’m usually thinking about betting odds rather than just enjoying the match. Occupational hazard.

Also been getting into photography lately. Nothing professional, just landscapes and dog photos mostly. Good excuse to get away from screens.

How to Contact Me

If you’ve got questions about a casino, want to share your experience (good or bad), or just wanna chat about the industry, hit me up:

Email: [email protected]

Twitter/X: @RyanMitchellAU (mostly ranting about dodgy casinos and posting dog pics)

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ryanmitchellcasino

I try to respond to everything within 24 hours. Sometimes takes a bit longer if I’m testing a casino or Sarah’s dragged me away from my laptop for something crazy like “going outside.”

But yeah, always happy to help. This industry’s got enough scammers and BS merchants. Let’s look out for each other.