A hunky polo player smashing his mallet against a tent pole and hurling his helmet to the ground is one of the more dramatic scenes in Prince Harry’s new, ‘make-or-break’ Netflix series about his beloved sport.
Louis Devaleix, 43, seems to embody what the Duke of Sussex calls the ‘passion and determination’ of those involved in the sport of kings.
The French-born player smirks at his pregnant wife Pamela as he tells her he has to fly to Argentina for a game and does not know when he will return – a comment which prompts a woman who appears to be his mother-in-law to complain: ‘You can’t do that when somebody is pregnant!’
While the trailer for the five-part series which airs later this month has been ridiculed as little more than a tawdry reality show, the truth is that Devaleix’s on-screen outbursts reflect a darker side to his personality.
Court records in Florida reveal that he has faced a slew of disturbing allegations from two previous wives – Tracy White, 43, a lawyer, and Brandace Baker, 37, with whom he has a seven-year-old son. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Brazilian-raised businessman Devaleix admitted:
Becoming so enraged during an argument with his first wife Ms White that he smashed his fist into a door and ‘punched a hole through it’;
Cheating on both Ms White and second wife Ms Baker; l Screaming and cursing at his second wife who claimed he jabbed his finger between her eyes in front of their young son. She alleged that he called her names such as slut, whore and bitch.
Harry and wife Meghan are both executive producers of Polo, their fourth and penultimate show for Netflix as part of their $100 million five-year deal with the streaming giant which expires next year.
Prince Harry, left, and Louis Devaleix playing in Aspen, Colorado, in 2022
While Devaleix has vehemently denied any acts of abuse – and a judge ruled there was no proof he had been violent – his inclusion so prominently in the Sussexes’ show is sure to raise eyebrows.
The couple are passionate advocates of women’s support groups, through their Archewell Foundation, and, while there is no suggestion of serious wrong-doing by Devaleix, the fact he admitted anger issues raises troubling questions.
Last night, a Hollywood executive said: ‘The fact that a key figure in the show admits punching a door in a rage is quite extraordinary.
‘These days, there is huge aversion to anything controversial. ‘Meghan and Harry desperately need a hit. This show is make-or-break for them. The only show which was a huge success was their documentary series about leaving the Royal Family, when they dished dirt on the royals which, let’s face it, is what most people are interested in.’
The Mail on Sunday can reveal details of Devaleix’s court battles, contained in hundreds of documents. He married his first wife Ms White in 2012 but they split four years later.
In 2018 he sued her for allegedly breaching the non-disparagement agreement they both signed during their divorce by talking to his second wife about his ‘sexual encounters, spending habits, purchases and travel details’.
The matter was voluntarily dismissed in 2022 but the case file includes a deposition in which Devaleix admits he cheated on both Ms White and second wife Ms Baker.
He talks about how Ms White came into possession of text messages between himself ‘and (other) women….naked pictures’.
Devaleix with his third wife, Pamela, who is pregnant. The couple have a four-month-old daughter
Harry and Meghan are both executive producers of Polo, their fourth and penultimate show for Netflix as part of their $100 million five-year deal with the streaming giant which expires next year
‘On my end. I was unfaithful’, Devaleix said in a sworn deposition. ‘At the beginning of the relationship, I was unfaithful to my
second wife, and, at the very end of my relationship, I was unfaithful to my first wife.’
He refuted an accusation he broke ‘multiple doors’ while he was with Ms White, though admitting: ‘I did break one door in her former house.
‘I punched a hole through it and we paid to have it replaced – but not multiple doors.’
Devaleix, a former professional golfer who took up polo in 2020, has had various business interests including drug treatment centres and fire engine technology.
He met second wife Ms Baker in 2016 and they married the following year in Palm Beach.
They split 12 months later and divorced in 2019 after a bitter court battle during which
Devaleix claimed his ex-wife’s wealthy parents paid for private investigators to put him under 24/7 surveillance. The case file shows they have continued to argue through the courts over matters such as child support and school fees, with the latest filing last July.
Devaleix sued his second wife for slander and battery for some of the claims she made during the divorce. The case was later dismissed.
Among the dozens of court documents, there is unflattering testimony about Devaleix’s alleged temper. In a text from May 2018, Ms Baker argued with Devaleix about his alleged rages.
She wrote: ‘You scared me and left us the other night.’
Devaleix replied: ‘I scared you? Because I said FU, why would you say that?’
Ms Baker said: ‘You did not say it. You screamed it. Put your finger in my face between my eyes. In front of our son.’
He shot back: ‘Yes, I screamed it and I’m sorry truly, I’m sorry for cursing at you.’
In her response, Ms Baker said: ‘I did not feel safe for myself or Ames [their son].’ She went on: ‘You must understand this revolves around your inability to control your temper and attacks.
‘Until you get the help you need, I’m uncomfortable being around you.’
Devaleix replied: ‘I’m sorry for the cursing and the fights truly.’
Devaleix, 43, seems to embody what the Duke of Sussex calls the ‘passion and determination’ of those involved in the sport of kings
Harry and Meghan pose alongside Dana Barnes, left, Adolfo Cambiaso and Malcolm Borwick during a polo event in April
Describing one phone call before a family trip to Barbados, she said: ‘He told me he met someone who was friends with someone I dated in the past and he called me names like slut, whore, bitch and told me he wasn’t coming to Barbados the next day with my family’.
Devaleix strongly rejected his ex-wife’s claim that he was physically violent towards her and called it a ‘lie’ in court papers. In the marriage dissolution, a judge agreed with him and found that even though Ms Baker’s family spent $125,000 on private investigators to monitor Devaleix – who, according to court documents, was earning $1million a year – he did not find anything that would ’cause concern’.
The judge found that there was ‘no evidence whatsoever the husband had been violent with the wife’ and questioned how ‘candid’ Ms Baker had been about those claims.
The judge also noted that when accused by Ms Baker of abusing drugs and being violent, Devaleix offered to undergo drug screening and enrol in an anger management course. It is unclear if he attended.
Devaleix – whose third wife Pamela is a polo player and they have a four-month-old daughter – was not available when approached for comment. A spokesman for the Sussexes referred a similar request to Netflix, which did not respond.
His participation is not the only controversy surrounding Prince Harry’s polo series. The Mail on Sunday spoke to several people in the polo world – some of whom have played against members of the Royal Family including Prince William and Prince Harry – who have complained that the filmed scenes do not fairly reflect the current culture of the sport.
One player said: ‘For years, we have tried to get away from the elitist image. There is a lot of new money in the sport and that money supports the best players from all walks of life, many of whom do not come from money, particularly those from South America.’
Another woman involved in encouraging inner city children in Los Angeles to participate in polo in the city’s Will Rogers state park said: ‘The Netflix trailer has annoyed a lot of people. Harry says he wants to show the passion and grit behind the sport but, instead, the trailer looks like the Kardashians. For example, there is this guy smashing his mallet into the tent. Such behaviour wouldn’t be tolerated in our club.
‘We’ve spent years trying to get away from the image of rich, entitled people playing a sport only the very privileged can afford. I have no doubt Harry loves the game, so this feels like a wasted opportunity.’
While the series features ‘superstars’ of the game – such as Argentine father-son Adolfo Cambiaso, 49, and Poroto, 19 – even their depiction has caused many to speculate if the Duke may be unsubtly sending a message to his own estranged father.
Adolfo, considered one of the finest players ever, is shown facing off against his son in the US Open polo final in Wellington, Florida, earlier this year.
While Harry does not appear in the trailer – a lack of ‘air time’ about which Netflix chiefs were reportedly unhappy – he was photographed surrounded by Netflix cameras at the event, suggesting he will appear in the series.
The Cambiaso father-son rivalry is a running theme. In the trailer Adolfo says: ‘I am very proud of my son but I try to beat him.’ His grinning son replies: ‘I want to win against my dad and say I’m the greatest in the sport.’
Adolfo, who owns a ranch in Argentina with 1,000 horses, made a fortune cloning polo ponies. While cloning is illegal in many horse-related sports including racing, it is legal in polo with animals going for as much as $1million each. One pony he cloned, called Dolfina Cuartetera, was dubbed ‘the Lionel Messi of polo’ in a nod to the Argentinian football legend.
Poroto rides one of the clones, known as ‘Cuartetera clone B09’, while a teammate is on an identical-looking horse called ‘Cuartetera clone B06’.
A source said: ‘The father-son dynamic is played up big time in the series. You have to wonder if that is intentional because of Harry’s own issues with his father.’
The Cambiasos are not the only ‘squabbling’ father-son team.
‘Big Tim’ Dutta, 59, arrived in the US from India four decades ago with just $313 in his pocket. Now he owns the world’s largest equine transit company.
His good-looking son Timmy, 23, talks about ‘working hard to earn the respect and recognition’ of his ‘tough-love’ father.
His dad is shown chastising him for not playing well while Timmy, in echoes of the young Prince Harry, is depicted partying with a beautiful brunette.
His father looks to the camera and says: ‘Timmy’s looks are what they are. It’s distracting.’
For Prince Harry, still alienated from his family and desperate for approval – and a TV ratings hit – the success or failure of the series, Polo, could prove critical to his dream of making it in Hollywood.
Whether the colourful and controversial characters he highlights in this series will help or hinder that dream remains to be seen.
Additional reporting by Daniel Bates and Ben Ashford.
