Duel is a new crypto casino launched by Ossi “Monarch” Ketola (same guy behind CSGOEmpire), branding itself as “The First Casino That Gives a Fuck”. They claim their Originals and sports betting will have 0% house edge. If they deliver on everything they promise, this could really be the new Stake killer and a major disturbance in the industry. My full deep-dive.
Earn cash rewards while you play – See how it works 🡲
No sponsors. No paid bias.
What is Duel.com
This new casino looks insane. If they really deliver on their 100% RTP on their Originals and sports betting, this could be a game changer.
They pride themselves in having no real bonuses for the players aside from rakeback on slots and live games; No welcome bonus, no real VIP reward system, etc.
The reason is simple:
Casino bonuses come from the money the casinos expect to make on your back.
Let’s say you play a game with 98% RTP (return to player), that means for every 100$ bet you place, the casino is expecting to make 2$
Bonus systems are based on that 2$ you’re expected to lose.
They’ll give you part of that back as bonuses/rewards to keep you coming back, gambling and wanting more with a “fake” VIP system progression.
In other words, what would you prefer:
- A casino with bigger house edge that gives you back a fraction of your expected losses in bonuses.
- A casino with virtually no house edge that doesn’t give you back shit because there isn’t anything to give back.
Personally I’d go with #2 – no house edge.
That’s actually why for a while I really enjoyed Winna (they guaranteed max RTP on every game on their site).
So how are they going to make the money if they have no house edge? Well not all their games will have a 0% house edge right.
- House edge is really small on blackjack if you play a perfect basic strategy game. But most people are just plain dumb and don’t even bother looking up a BS chart so they’ll end up losing money.
- Slots and other live games from providers like Prag or Hacksaw do have a big house edge.
- On games like mines, people are most likely to get fancy and also throw some money away.
What I like and don’t like so far:
✅ 0% or close to 0% house edge on Originals and sports betting
✅ Launched by Monarch from CSGOEmpire
✅ Very transparent about everything
✅ Website is clean and fast
✅ They accept HBAR
✅ Instant 50% house edge lossback compared to Stake that gives a fraction in bonuses
⛔ Missing some of the usual Originals like Keno
⛔ No guarantee their 0% house edge will work in the long run
⛔ Issue paying affiliates
⛔ Site is (too) often down
Overall I think that Duel is very promising and really think this could lead other casinos to follow suit with some 0% edge games.
Only problem is that people are dumbasses and I don’t think most recreational gamblers see the value (or even care) in the 0% house edge vs getting their 2$ weekly on Stake.
About Ossi “Monarch” Ketola
Ossi Ketola, known as Monarch online, is a Finnish casino owner and, recently, nose-bleed poker player.
Basically, the only thing you need to know about him is that his whole brand is controversy.
Self-admitted early “scammer” past
Monarch often described himself as a “little annoying scammer” as a kid on RuneScape.
He would run a scam where he’d say to people to give him their items/money so that he’d double it and would just log off instead.
He also tries to frame that scammer past as some sort of redemption arc: from kid scamming people on runscape to “Monarch” exposing scammers.
CSGOEmpire & skin gambling controversies
Ossi owns the biggest CSGO skin gambling site CSGO Empire.
Skin gambling as a whole has been heavily criticized for:
- Easy access by minors
- Operating in legal gray zones
- Aggressive influencer promotion
CSGOEmpire could, allegedly, be accessed by underage players and operated despite restrictions in some markets.
Feud campaigns & Coffeezilla angle
Ketola/CSGOEmpire engaged in public campaigns accusing rival sites (notably CSGORoll and others) of rigging games and scamming users
This one goes deep and if you want to learn more you should check the Coffeezilla video on it.
Racist language & branding
If you’ve followed the guy on social medias, you know he’s trying his best to be as edgy as possible. That’s his persona (I hope). Here are a few highlights:
PokerNews and others highlight his “super gay, would love to mog him” comment toward Daniel Negreanu as part of his public persona.
WorldCasinoDirectory explicitly describes him as drawing criticism for racist language and inflammatory remarks online.
Rahapelisanomat recounts a CSGOEmpire promo that used racist language (including an n-word slur in a “Black History Month”-themed context) that triggered backlash.
That branding recently came to bite him in the ass, with is X accounts being suspended.
X/Twitter suspension (Monarch, Duel, CSGOEmpire)
Recently (late 2025), his personal X account and accounts tied to Duel and CSGOEmpire were suspended.
X’s public message: generic “violated X rules,” no detailed reason given.
Monarch’s explanation: It’s a coordinated attack by rival casinos after Duel launched 100% RTP / 99.9%+ RTP games he says threaten incumbents’ profits.
- Supporters: see him as being punished for disrupting the market.
- Haters: note his history of slurs, harassment, and targeted campaigns and think ToS violations are a more likely reason.
There is no confirmed independent evidence publicly proving his “industry sabotage” theory.
Nose-bleed poker
Plays enormous heads-up matches (millions+), with:
- Record televised pots.
- Gigantic swings (multi-million losses to Jungleman, Limitless, Doug Polk, etc.)
In some streams he complains about decks being “rigged”.
He really leans into a trash-talking, antagonistic “rich whale villain” persona.
Other circulating allegations (allegedly)
People on X and Reddit accuse him of stuff like producing wine with Nazi/H*tler imagery and various extreme personal or criminal insinuations.
Duel Bonuses & Codes
Sign-up using code “BURNING” to get access to the following leaderboards:
- 5,000,000/month
- 1,000,000/week
- 100,000/day
I also give back 50% of all my referral revenues directly to you.
By signing up with code “BURNING”, you get automatically entered to ALL my future giveaways. I do random giveaways on X, often weekly, bigger ones monthly and other random ones when I hit big.
My referrals are 3x more likely to win my giveaways on X.
On top of that, I send you cash when you hit certain wager milestones.
It’s a no brainer
Duel Affiliates & Streamers
There’s a bunch of big names on the Duel bandwagon already. More notably:
Limitless (Wiktor Malinowski), high-stake crusher.
Andrew Tate
There’s also an army of small streamers and X accounts promoting that site right now.
The Rise of Duel – The Fastest Growing Casino in Crypto
Duel came out of nowhere, and in just a few months, it’s already shaking up the entire crypto gambling scene.
For years Stake sat comfortably at the top with around 50% of the market, but now there’s a real challenger.
Duel’s reportedly sitting around 10% market share, and even if that number’s rounded up, it’s hard to ignore what’s happening here.
The formula is simple: games with 99.9%+ RTP, instant crypto payouts, no KYC, and a founder who’s not afraid to go to war.
Whether you love or hate Ossi “Monarch” Ketola, there’s no denying the man knows how to build hype.
But let’s be real, Duel isn’t without controversy.
The founder’s reputation is divisive.
The brand’s tone is aggressive.
Their claim of “100% RTP” raised eyebrows everywhere (and probably a few legal concerns).
The whole thing feels like it’s teetering between genius disruption and controlled chaos.
Yet somehow, that’s exactly what the space needed, a shakeup that forces other casinos to rethink how they treat players.
If the 10% market share is even half true, that’s a massive power shift.
It means players are voting with their wallets, moving away from high-margin houses toward platforms that actually respect edge and transparency.
And it’s not just randoms doing it, streamers, affiliates, and high rollers are piling in too.
Bottom line. Duel’s rise is the biggest thing to hit crypto gambling since Stake’s launch.
Whether it holds that momentum or implodes under its own hype, time will tell.
But right now, they’ve got everyone’s attention, and that alone makes them dangerous.
Final Take
I personally love the idea behing Duel, BUT.
Duel making 0% edge games is cool on paper, but killing (what they call predatory) promos and bonuses isn’t it.
Most players don’t notice the house edge, they just notice there’s no fun stuff left compared to other casinos they’re used to.
Gambling’s entertainment, and like it or not, bonuses are part of the thrill.
I think that long term, if Duel doesn’t find creative ways to give back to the masses (not just their leaderboards), they’ll lose a chunk of their crowd.
Thoughts?
