While the province of Ontario, Canada has implemented in-person sports betting, residents of Saskatchewan are still waiting for the opportunity to make a bet in a casino.
Sports wagering in an Ontario casino became legal the end of October and facilities wasted no time offering the activity in their establishments. Great Canadian Entertainment has installed kiosks in 10 of their casinos.
“We are proud to have worked closely with the gaming industry and our partners in the Ontario government on this next phase of growth in Ontario’s gaming market,” said Duncan Hannay, president and CEO of OLG, in a press release. “Sportsbooks in casinos will offer a diverse and integrated entertainment experience for players, give our service providers a stake in the sports gaming market, and bring more jobs and economic benefits to host communities.”
While Ontario jumped at the chance to offer sports betting in their casinos, the eight facilities in Saskatchewan are not moving as quickly.
One of the casinos, Dakota Dunes Casino, told CDC Gaming that they are planning a sports lounge with betting in early 2023 but it won’t have in-person betting. Patrons will still be using their mobile app.
“We just launched online gaming, so at the time we were 100% brick-and-mortar casinos, temporary closures as a result of the pandemic had a huge impact on the bottom line,” said Alanna Adamko, SIGA’s director of communications and media relations. “We’ve had a strong fiscal year in 2022-2023 and bringing online new lines of business such as online gaming and sports betting will help increase revenue streams in the future. Sports lounges are just another of many entertainment amenities that SIGA casinos provide, to try to appeal and tailor to different audiences.”
Online sports betting has only been legal for about a month and can only be accessed through PlayNow.com. The online platform is operated by Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) and regulate by Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority.
SaskGaming, which owns Casino Regina and Casino Moose Jaw told CDC Gaming they are happy with the current set up.
“As it stands right now, there are no immediate plans to establish sports books or betting lounges in our land-based casinos,” said Shanna Schulhauser, a spokesperson with SaskGaming.
