Legal sports betting in Saskatchewan is about to enter the 21st century.
The Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) announced on Friday that the province’s new site for online sports betting and casino gaming, PlayNow.com, will launch on Thursday, November 3.
“We are excited to be the exclusive provider of Saskatchewan’s first and only legal online gaming site, which will provide a safe and secure option for residents to play their favourite casino games and bet on their favourite sports teams online,” SIGA President and CEO Zane Hansen said in a press release.
SIGA was created by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN), which represents 74 First Nations in Saskatchewan. FSIN and the province also announced in 2021 that a deal had been struck (including a 50/50 revenue split) that paved the way for a new online-gaming site in Saskatchewan, which SIGA would officially run.
In June, SIGA said it would use British Columbia Lottery Corp. (BCLC) and its PlayNow platform for the site. Saskatchewan will now be the third province using the platform, after B.C. and Manitoba.
“This historical partnership is the first of its kind, with a First Nations operator for online gaming with revenue sharing between First Nations and the Province,” FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron said in Friday’s release. “This will provide many economic benefits to the residents of the province and our First Nations communities.”
An online addition
The partnership also brings sports bettors in Saskatchewan closer to having a legal option for online wagering.
Currently, the only form of legal sports betting in the province is through the products offered by Western Canada Lottery Corp., such as SPORT SELECT. The game has single-event wagering and props, but it also has $100 limits and requires going to a lottery retailer to get a ticket.
Other provinces offer online options for sports betting, adding or tweaking them accordingly after the legalization of single-event wagering last year. Saskatchewan, though, agreed to let SIGA handle that business, and the group began seeking proposals from the gaming industry before selecting BCLC.
SIGA’s Hansen said that the gaming authority had been looking for a “full turnkey solution” that would offer both online sports betting and casino gaming, as well as robust responsible-gaming features. And SIGA, which runs seven brick-and-mortar casinos in Saskatchewan, was looking for a way to integrate the site into its loyalty programs for players as well.
“[BCLC] had a very good package put together, and that's what made them stand out above the others,” Hansen said in an interview with Covers.
SIGA is trying to win over users of “grey market” gaming sites, too. Those sites may be licensed or regulated outside the province or abroad, but they are not overseen by the province or SIGA and are not authorized to take bets in Saskatchewan.
“I think the best thing we can do is just give [bettors] a very competitive and entertaining product with good selection,” Hansen said.
“We are excited to welcome https://t.co/1u6L3gx9ZW as a valued partner and newest member of our strong Rider Nation”
— Saskatchewan Roughriders (@sskroughriders) October 21, 2022
Saskatchewan Roughrider Football Club President & CEO Craig Reynolds.
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Saskatchewan residents who are 19 and older can now start pre-registering with the province’s PlayNow site ahead of its launch.
Out-of-province residents should also be able to play on the site when it goes live and while in Saskatchewan. That could come in handy for travellers who are expected to flock to the province in November for the 109th playing of the Canadian Football League’s championship game, the Grey Cup.
PlayNow has already partnered with Saskatchewan’s beloved Roughriders. The CFL team will wear the site’s logo on their jerseys starting on Saturday to start driving people to the platform.
“Similar to the existing brick-and-mortar casinos in the province, all net proceeds from the PlayNow.com site are reinvested back into Saskatchewan,” Hansen noted in the release.
