It's quickly becoming apparent that there are two competing points of view about online sports betting in Canada, and that both sides are digging in on their differing perspectives.
One view is that sports betting should be the domain of government-owned lottery and gaming corporations, which have long had legal monopolies for online gambling in most of Canada.
The other view is that private-sector players should be brought into the mix as authorized competitors via licensing and regulation, an approach that only two provinces have embraced thus far.
Those different approaches have created concern and conflict at times, but both sides seem like they will be set in their ways for the foreseeable future.
Welcome to Canada (Ontario's version)
The two provinces inviting private-sector competition are Ontario, which launched a regulated market for iGaming in 2022 (similar to what's been done in U.S. states), and Alberta, which is working toward something along the same lines.
Canadian Gaming Association president and CEO Paul Burns said earlier this month during the NEXT iGaming and sports betting summit in New York that Alberta cabinet ministers recently approved a plan for a new iGaming market.
That plan follows some fits and starts to Alberta sports betting, as the gaming industry had hoped for a launch as early as late last year.
Burns said a launch a year from now is a “fair estimation” for Alberta. The government still has things to do, including legislation that may need passing.
“The structure will look very similar to Ontario,” Burns said. “What we're encouraging is to look a lot like Ontario.”
Ontario currently looks like a province with about 50 different private-sector iGaming operators, which are authorized to offer online sports betting in Ontario, casino gambling, and poker. In Ontario, "iGaming" is an umbrella term for online sports betting as well as internet-based slots and table games.
The roster of provincially regulated operators in Ontario includes bet365, DraftKings, and FanDuel, among many others. Competing alongside them is the government-owned Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which used to be the only authorized game in town for online gambling.
Ontario is now down to just 49 private-sector iGaming operators (that are regulated by the province). RIP Fitzdares:https://t.co/gVAtjgxwCV pic.twitter.com/5grgtv7tmF
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) March 25, 2025
What sports betting in Alberta ultimately looks like remains to be seen. The province has a government-owned lottery and gaming entity that is providing iGaming using the Play Alberta brand, but it's possible that could eventually be one of many regulated sportsbooks.
A spokesperson for Alberta's iGaming minister said it is "no secret" the provincial government has been working on a new strategy.
"We are currently working through the government’s decision-making process," said Brandon Aboultaif, press secretary to Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally, in a statement to Covers.
Not our cup of tea
But what Ontario has done and what Alberta may do is much different from what's happening everywhere else in Canada. These other provinces also look like they are doubling down on their approach.
As has been reported elsewhere, the Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC) and British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) have launched a request for proposals (RFP) seeking a “National Sports Betting Solution,” which Loto-Québec and other lotteries could ultimately participate in as well.
“The Operators are collaborating to select a single Supplier with which they will each negotiate a contract to provide a technology platform as well as the trading and liability management services that will enable each of the Operators to offer sports betting through the Supplier; collectively deemed the National Sports Betting Solution,” the RFP says.
This “best-in-class” product would be under one brand, PROLINE, a name Canadian lotteries have used since 1992, the document notes.
“A single sport betting platform solution is meant to enable a consistent sports betting experience for Players in each of the Operators’ jurisdictions,” the RFP adds. "The Supplier is expected to provide digital sports betting services for all operators under the brand name 'PROLINE+', and retail sports betting services for select Operators under the brand name 'PROLINE.'"
BCLC currently provides the technology for the sole authorized online gambling platform in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. All three provinces now use BCLC's PlayNow brand for mobile sports betting and internet casino gambling.
Potentially, then, Canada’s Atlantic provinces, B.C., Manitoba, Quebec, and Saskatchewan could all have the same online sportsbook. In other words, everyone but Alberta and Ontario.
The two solitudes of iGaming
So there are two Canadas: one that wants iGaming provided by many, and the other that wants it provided by few (albeit maybe with some private-sector support).
The stakes of this difference in opinion are relatively low compared to the things provincial governments are most concerned with, such as health care and education.
That said, gaming-related tax revenues are used to help fund those government priorities, and online gambling is proving to be the predominant way people want to wager their money.
It's also up to Canada's provinces to decide how to "conduct and manage" gambling, including online. And it doesn't look like everyone will get on the same page anytime soon.
Burns said the B.C. government is at least open to a discussion about a different approach, but the actions of its lottery suggest that province will remain on its current path for the foreseeable future.
Furthermore, despite the efforts of a private-sector coalition to get the Quebec government to open up its legal online gambling market, the CGA's Burns said the province is a "long way away" from changing its approach.
The Quebec sports betting market is also trickier for operators to crack given the language barrier. While Canada may have two official languages, in Quebec, there is only the one: French.
Grey days
Nevertheless, the two iGaming Canadas are arguably driven to their various ends by a common cause, which is decreasing the amount of gambling people are doing with “grey market” operators.
These “grey” sportsbooks and casinos may be regulated abroad or outside any given province, but they are not authorized by those provinces. They are also very likely where the bulk of online gambling is happening in Canada, with the exception of Ontario.
Ontario’s regulated iGaming market transitioned formerly grey operators into the new regulatory framework. So someone who once took bets without Ontario’s permission was able to get a license and bring their customers with them into the regulated market.
Ontario can now point to research that suggests more than 85% of online gambling in the province takes place with provincially regulated sites.
Before the launch of its competitive iGaming market, the Ontario government said an estimated 70% of online gambling was taking place on "unregulated, grey market" sites. Alberta’s lottery and gaming entity even has research suggesting it controls less than half of the province’s online gambling activity.
The thinking in Alberta and Ontario, then, is instead of trying to stamp out grey market operators, invite them into a regulated system where you set the rules and get a cut of the action.
In Ontario, roughly 20% of a private iGaming operator’s revenue goes to help fund government priorities. Ontario gamblers wagered approximately $7 billion with private iGaming sites in February, which resulted in $280.1 million in revenue and around $56 million that was due to the government. And that is in addition to the contribution of the government-owned OLG's iGaming site, which competes with private-sector rivals in the province's regulated gambling sector.
The government-owned Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which went from being the province's only authorized sports betting and iGaming operator to one of 50, is getting a new sportsbook tech provider: Kambi.
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) February 25, 2025
OLG's transition from FDJ to Kambi expected to be done in H2 of 2025. pic.twitter.com/rPzyyh3tE0
But not every province sees Ontario's model as a silver bullet.
Manitoba's lottery has even taken the novel approach of trying to push one offshore sportsbook operator out of its provincial gambling market by seeking an injunction through the courts. That legal matter is ongoing.
Ontario’s model is also giving other provinces headaches. Advertising for Ontario-regulated gambling sites is allegedly driving up the cost of marketing for government-owned gambling entities. Those ads don’t always stay in Ontario either, which can create confusion among consumers in other provinces.
More concerning are the allegations made by non-Ontario lotteries that Ontario-licensed sites nudge people who try to access them from other parts of Canada to international affiliate sites using the same brand. These accusations have been made in a few different settings, including an Ontario government court reference.
Put differently, it's alleged someone in B.C. might see an ad for an Ontario-regulated sportsbook, go to the website, and get told they can’t play here, but, hey, how about this other site? And these sites, BCLC recently contended, are illegal, an allegation the private sector has protested.
BCLC also warned Alberta's plans to launch an Ontario-like iGaming market could exacerbate the situation.
So, for the foreseeable future, the two iGaming Canadas look like they will stick to their respective approaches.
“When British Columbians choose PlayNow, net profits generated through this legal and regulated gambling activity flows back to the province to help fund critical government services, like health care, education and community programs," a BCLC spokesperson told Covers. "The money spent on unregulated gambling sites goes directly to illegal operators and does not stay in B.C."
