Ontario, Canada’s Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk has released a report detailing legal concerns with the internet gaming and sports betting market planned by the provincial government.
The AG concludes that the following issues should be reviewed before commercial operators are allowed to participate, including the criminal code, governance structure on internet gaming and fairness and integrity.
The AG wrote, “To address the legal risks associated with the proposed construct for Internet gaming in Ontario, we recommend that the government take appropriate steps to ensure compliance with the Criminal Code prior to launching the new internet gaming market.”
The government replied, ” Ontario is committed to creating a safe, regulated and competitive online gaming market to help protect consumers. The government will take any additional steps it considers necessary to address any legal risks associated with the proposed framework for Internet gaming in Ontario.”
At this point the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. is the only legal provider of iGaming and the only legal online sportsbook in the province. In August it added the PROLINE single event sports betting portal.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) opened registration for iGaming operators in September.
No official date for online markets has been announced, although Canadian Gaming Association President Paul Burns says that many observers feel it could be next year’s first quarter.
At the recent SBC Summit North America in New Jersey, panelists on Ontario sports betting agreed that the market would probably be pushed back until early next year, but they didn’t agree on an actual date.
Burns was one of the panelists. Others included Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment President Richard Roberts, Sporting Group CEO Andy Wright, Nuvei Chief Corporate Development Officer Neil Erlick, and PointsBet Canada VP of Legal, Compliance, & People Chantal Cipriano.
Many operators are pressuring the government to open the 14.5 million resident market in time for the Super Bowl in February. Among them are BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel, PointsBet and theScore.
Wright told Sports Handle: “Most of these operators are very mature, they are coming with a product that they’ve invested in for many, many years that’s worked in Europe and around the globe.”
Recently, GAN Ltd. a leading full-service internet gaming software-as-a-service provider to the real money internet gaming, announced that it would be partner with a “Tier One” U.S. sportsbook operator for Ontario sports betting. Gan said the provider wants to remain anonymous for now.
This probably narrows that field to FanDuel, DraftKings and BetMGM, based on U.S. market share. Most opinions favor FanDuel since Gan partners with the company in several states.
The government will give much weight to whether to allow former off-shore “gray market” operators access to the legal market. Estimates for how much Canadians have bet at illegal sites go as high as $14 billion annually. Deloitte Canada estimates the legal market could grow to be as large as $28 billion annually due to the legalization of single-gaming wagering. That would make it the fifth largest U.S. state in terms of population.
