Offshore Gambling Sites Repurpose 448 Expired Government Domains to Attract Users
Backlinking.com claims at least 448 websites sold between January 2024 and May 2026 became gambling websites, with owners receiving $22.3 million and some reaching $50,000. Domains sold over $5,000 were most likely to become gambling sites. Examples include Queen’s Green Canopy, Every Woman Every Child’s website, and Vote Leave targeting websites not on GamStop.
SCCG Take — This exposes a gap in domain governance that offshore operators exploit to bypass advertising and self-exclusion rules. Regulators need accelerated protocols to reclaim or delist such domains before they redirect vulnerable traffic.
Offshore gambling sites are acquiring expired government and organizational domains with established search authority to redirect visitors to unregulated platforms. This approach allows operators to leverage domain history for prominence in search results while the engines update to the new content. The practice targets users evading restrictions, including those who have self-excluded from licensed sites.
According to Backlinking.com, at least 448 websites have been sold between January 2024 and May 2026 that have become gambling websites this way. Backlinking.com’s analysis shows domain owners received $22.3 million from gambling sites and affiliates. Some individual domains fetched as much as $50,000, a minor outlay for the traffic potential.
Calculated Selection of High-Value Domains
Domains that sold for over $5,000 were the most likely to transform into gambling destinations. Of 3,692 sampled expired sites, one in ten above that price threshold became gambling properties. The report identifies this as a deliberate strategy that exploits search engine metrics before they devalue the new content.
Specific examples stand out. The Queen’s Green Canopy tree-planting initiative from Queen Elizabeth II’s 2022 Platinum Jubilee now leads to online slots in Indonesia. Every Woman Every Child, a United Nations global health project, redirects to an Indonesian-themed online casino. The former Vote Leave Brexit campaign site has been repurposed to offer gambling to UK self-excluded players, targeting keywords such as “websites not on GamStop”.
The Enforcement Gap in Domain Oversight
These tactics are linked to weak consumer protections and heighten risks for users drawn in through deceptive means. The low cost and high yield undermine licensed operators who comply with stricter rules on advertising and player safeguards. Search engines and regulators face a lag in identifying and mitigating these redirects.
Targeted monitoring of high-value expired domains, especially former .gov and public initiative sites, could close this vector. Without faster delisting and transfer scrutiny, offshore sites will continue to scale this method, shifting traffic away from regulated markets and complicating enforcement against evasion.
Reporting: GamblingNews
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
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