Ontario Could Get Up To 40 Gaming Operators, As PointsBet And Others Go Live Monday

The number of commercial iGaming and sports betting operators in Ontario could grow to as many as 40 this year, according to an industry expert.

Interest in the commercial gaming market in Canada’s largest province has been “significant,” said Paul Burns, president and CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association.

Beginning on Monday, a dozen or more commercial online sports betting and iGaming operators will go live. In addition to downloading Ontario sports betting apps, users will be able to download apps to bet on casino games such as poker and slots.

The results of this new venture should be clear by the time industry leaders meet in Toronto in June for the 25th Canadian Gaming Summit, Burns said.

This year’s summit, titled “Canada — A World of New Opportunities,” is scheduled to be held June 7-9 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

“There has been a significant amount of interest – between 30 and 40 operators are expected in the market within the first year – and I think we’ll see the beginnings of that by the time of the Summit,” Burns told Canadian Gaming Business.

List of Approved Gaming Companies

By late in the week, at least 16 gaming operators had been licenced to operate in the province. Here is the recent list:

• Annexio’s LottoGo
• BetMGM
• Colbet
• FanDuel Ontario
• Fitzdares
• bet365
• LeoVegas
• Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG)
• PointsBet Canada
• Rivalry
• Leo Vegas’ Royal Panda
• BetRivers
• theScore Bert
• Unibet
• World Series of Poker
• 888

List Will Include More Gaming Companies Later

Some gaming companies seeking to operate in Ontario had not been listed by midweek but will be added as the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario issues new licences.

Some operators that have been licenced won’t be ready to launch on Monday, said commission spokesman Raymond Kahnert.

“Some are more ready than others,” he told Gambling.com.

Instead of launching in Ontario on Monday, for instance, Unibet announced it plans to be up and running on April 11.

PointsBet Canada Set To Launch Monday

Among the operators ready to go on Monday is PointsBet Canada, said Patrick Eichner, senior director, communications.

“PointsBet Canada has been publicly committed to an April 4 launch since becoming one of the very first iGaming operators regulated by the AGCO,” Eichner told Gambling.com in an email. “We will be ready to roll from the jump.”

‘Bright Future’ Predicted for Ontario Gaming

Burns said he expects good things for the commercial Ontario gambling industry.

Sports betting has been legal in Canada since 1985, but only through each province’s lottery system. Only parley bets and pari-mutual gambling were allowed.

In August, Canadian provinces were authorized to offer single-event sports betting and to license commercial, non-governmental gaming operators. In Ontario, the launch date was set for April 4.

“It’s a bright future right now after a very dark couple of years for our industry,” Burns said. “We are on the cusp of significant change from the laws on sports betting to creating a regulated iGaming market in Ontario.”