Canada has always had a lot of people who like to gamble and have always liked to bet on sporting events, amongst other events, from the time of the fur trade to the present.
Since Canadians care a lot about their sports and teams, it may not surprise you to learn that there is a culture of betting on sports in the country. But you could say that it still has problems and hasn’t reached its full potential because of constrictions that have been set up over time.
Is Sports Betting Legal in Canada?
On June 23, 2021, the Senate of Canada authorized legal single-game sports betting for the very first time in the country’s history. This was a massive change for online sports betting in Canada. Before The Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act (C-218), the bill that made all of this possible, Canadians could only legally bet on parlays, which are bets with at least two or more events.
If players chose to do business elsewhere, grey-market European bookies and other offshore companies would get most of the country’s online business, and now with the passing of this bill, the revenue will be put back into Canada’s economy.
Seven provinces jumped at the chance right away. British Columbia, New Brunswick, Manitoba, Labrador and Newfoundland, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec all accepted single-game betting through provincial lottery retailers right away.
Soon after, Alberta joined, but Saskatchewan and Canada’s 3 territories, Yukon, Northwest, and Nunavut, decided, for now, to only allow people to bet on single games in stores, not online. Nova Scotia was the last province or territory to add now-legalized single-game bets to its list of choices in February 2022.
Sports Betting By Province
Ontario
Ontario has made the most progress in sports betting online since August 2021. Before the opening, iGaming Ontario established the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, which oversees all activities in the province. Online sports and casino betting in Ontario are regulated by AGCO.
iGaming Ontario also negotiates with outside sportsbook companies who want to move in. Lots of deals like these. Ontario’s online market began on 04-04-2022 with some well-known U.S. companies.
Ontario is the only Canadian jurisdiction that allows commercial iGaming operations.
Manitoba
Canada’s 5th most populous province added online single-game wagering on 08-27-2021. Manitobans must use PlayNow.com like British Columbians. The Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Corporation, the crown agency that regulates gambling in the province, teamed with the BCLC to bring sports betting to Manitoba. Many expect Manitoba and British Columbia to grow together if adjustments are made.
Alberta
Alberta introduced single-game betting on its Play Alberta platform on 09-01-2021, joining Manitoba. Alberta’s Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers draw online traffic. Manitoba and Alberta bettors now have an industry-standard, legal sportsbook with the complete menu. However, you should still look for sources that have Alberta sports betting laws explained in great detail before you start betting.
Quebec
Loto-Quebec, Canada’s first public lottery, formerly exclusively permitted parlay betting to residents. Loto-Quebec declared on 08-21-2021 that it was going to start offering single-game betting on the first legal day. On 08-27-2021, Loto-Quebec launched online and offline single-event betting in Quebec. Locals can now place single wagers online with Loto-Mise-o-jeu+ Quebec’s platform or at any brick-and-mortar casino with Prédictions.
BC
British Columbia, the westernmost state, was one of seven to enable single-game wagering right away. On 08-27-2021, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation began offering single-game wagers on its PlayNow.com platform. PlayNow.com, the province’s sole legal sportsbook, now offers casino, the BCLC’s online lottery, poker, bingo, and sports betting.
Atlantic Provinces
New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island added single-game wagers on Day 1 on 08-27-2021. Nova Scotia, the 4th and final Atlantic province, added single-game sports betting on 02-11-2022, just before Super Bowl 56.
The Atlantic Lottery Corporation regulates all iGaming businesses in the four Atlantic provinces. Therefore, gamblers must take legal action through PRO•LINE Stadium, the ALC’s only sports betting platform.
Prairie provinces
The Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC) oversees lottery games and sports betting in the three prairie provinces Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, and three territories Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Yukon, in central Canada.
Saskatchewan
On 06-06-2022, the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority announced a vendor agreement with the BCLC to construct an online gaming platform for its province, similar to Manitoba’s partnership with the BCLC. BCLC’s PlayNow.com will bring single-game online sports betting to Saskatchewan in 2022.
Nunavut, Yukon, and NWT
There are no internet sports betting in Nunavut, Yukon, or the Northwest Territories. Thus everything remains retail for the time being.
Conclusion
Bets on sports are still a fairly new thing in Canada. Before the 20th century, horse racing was the most popular form of gambling in Canada. People didn’t start betting on other sports until the early 1900s, when they started to become more popular. Over the past few decades, sports gambling has become becoming increasingly popular. It is now thought that Canadians wager billions of dollars on sports events each year.
In fact, the industry has changed even more since then. Now, Canadians can bet on many different sports, and there are different sportsbooks and companies that can operate all over the country. As we have seen with the latest inclusion of the top sports gambling sites in Canada, Canadians now have more options than ever before and can enjoy this hobby to the fullest.
There are, of course, new laws that have already transformed the way sports betting works in recent years. Even though it remains regulated at a provincial level, punters can now place a bet differently than they could before.
Gambling has long been a part of Canadian culture. In the past, gambling was often linked to crime and vice. However, in recent years, sports gambling has grown to be increasingly accepted, just like “The Girl with the Bracelet“ was accepted and unsuspected by her peers.
