Here’s what you need to know before the launch of single-event sports betting in Canada

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This article was published 12/08/2021 (1877 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The race to offer single-event sports betting across Canada is officially on, although for many companies that want a piece of the action it’s more of a long-distance run than a sprint.

Federal Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti announced Thursday that Canadians can place a legal bet on a single event beginning Aug. 27.

“Provinces and territories will be able to offer single-event sport betting products like wagering on the Grey Cup, Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final or the Super Bowl,” Lametti said in a news conference at Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls. “These changes to the Criminal Code will allow provinces and territories to use revenues to fund programming such as health care or education, as they do with other lottery revenues.”

For the Canadian Gaming Association and its members, the announcement ended a frustrating 40-plus days of waiting after royal assent at the end of June.

“The process is finally done and everyone now knows when they can start,” said CGA president and CEO Paul Burns. “We’re going to see single-event offerings in certain parts of the country on the 27th, or very shortly thereafter.”

Who’s first?

The provinces are responsible for regulating sports betting and gaming, and their lottery corporations have been preparing for the transition from parlay betting on a series of games or matches.

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation announced Thursday afternoon that it will launch Pro Line+ — for mobile devices, tablets and desktop computers — on the opening day of the new law, after an aggressive advertising campaign that started last month.

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation and Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis have also said they’re ready to unveil new online products once Bill C-218 becomes law. Alberta and Manitoba are among the participants, along with Saskatchewan, the Yukon and Northwest Territories in the Western Canada Lotteries Corp, and work in concert with the BCLC. Both Loto Quebec and the Atlantic Lottery Corporation have been mum about their plans since the bill received royal assent on June 29.

Where is Ontario on licensing and regulation?

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario is working on its proposed standards for sports and event betting toward an open market by the end of the year. The AGCO is seeking input by Aug. 18 from sportsbooks and other stakeholders planning to operate in the province’s new legal betting world. The standards apply to all sports, esports and fantasy sports products, and are expected to be released not too long after Labour Day.

What about sportsbooks?

While the picture across most of the provinces is fuzzy when it comes to whether sportsbooks will be allowed to operate, Ontario will be wide open for business and the biggest players in the still-evolving U.S. market have made it clear they’re coming north of the border, including:

• U.S. giants DraftKings, which has a relationship with the NFL around fantasy sports that includes Canada, and FanDuel publicly expressed support for Bill C-218 when it was passed.

• PointsBet announced in early June that it was establishing a Canadian operation and hired fantasy sports veteran Nic Sulsky away from Monkey Knife Fight as its first employee. The company put out a statement Thursday afternoon following Lametti’s announcement.

• Toronto-based Score Media and Gaming placed a billboard at Dundas Square a day after Bill C-218 received royal assent, and last month announced a sponsorship deal with Canlan Sports to have theScore Bet branded across its six GTA sports facilities. A week later, Penn National Gaming purchased Score Media for $2.2 billion and is now set to be a big-time operator in Ontario.

Can you bet on sports at a casino?

For sure. Casinos in Windsor and Niagara Falls, facing stiff competition from across the U.S. border, are already making plans to include a place for sports bettors to watch games and wager. At Thursday’s announcement, Richard Taylor of Fallsview Casino and Niagara Casino said the venues are excited about the opportunities as the casino business slowly reopens.

Added Burns, who expects casinos to start operating sportsbooks in the fall: “The land-based sportsbooks and casinos are going to take more time, but we know the provinces are working hard to get that done.”

Torstar Corp., which owns the Toronto Star, said in March it plans to launch an online casino betting brand in Ontario and has also indicated it plans to offer single-sport wagering.

Who else is excited?

• Provincial governments, which see tax revenue from licensing and other pieces of a new industry as a way to climb out of the pandemic.

• Workers with experience in sports betting, technology, business development, marketing, media and other sectors.

• Media companies and sports leagues, teams and organizations seeking new revenue sources from advertising, sponsorship and partnerships.

Steve McAllister is the editor-in-chief of The Parleh sports betting newsletter. A freelance contributor to the Star’s Sports section, he is based in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter: @StevieMacSports