Interactive
Canada – Ontario already one of the top five igaming jurisdictions in North America
By Phil - 5 April 2023
In just one year, the new legal igaming market in Ontario has delivered about $35.6bn in total wagers and approximately $1.4bn in total gaming revenue placing the province among the Top 5 igaming jurisdictions in North America.
iGaming Ontario announced these totals to mark the open market’s one-year anniversary. Ontario was the first Canadian province to launch an open, regulated igaming market on 4 April 2022. Since then, more than 1.6 million active player accounts on websites run by 40+ Operators with agreements with iGaming Ontario have made the province the most competitive market in continental North America.
“Ontario’s igaming market has displaced the pre-existing unregulated market and made Ontario a recognized leader internationally in this industry since its launch in April 2022,” said Attorney General Doug Downey. “We are truly proud of this strong, responsible, competitive online gaming model. I want to especially commend the strong leadership of Executive Director Martha Otton, Board Chair Dave Forestell and the rest of the team at iGaming Ontario for helping us transform Ontario into a global leader in the sector.”
“Today’s numbers demonstrate that Ontario has one of the best online gaming markets in the world,” said Dave Forestell. “Since Ontario opened the market we have seen new investment, job creation, and captured revenue that used to leave the province. Ontario is well on its way to becoming the best gaming jurisdiction in the world.”
“Every player who places a wager with a legal Operator is doing so in a safe, regulated, and protected environment,” said Martha Otton. “I want to thank the players, our 40+ Operators and our government partners for placing their trust in us. Together we can help this market continue its strong performance.”
On average, iGaming Ontario numbers show the monthly spend per active player account over the last year to be about $70.
According to an Ipsos survey conducted in March 2023 and released today by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), around 85 per cent of respondents who gambled online in Ontario over the past three months gambled on regulated sites.
The most popular sport to bet on was basketball at 28 per cent of betting wagers, followed by soccer at 15 per cent, football at 14 per cent, then hockey at nine per cent and baseball at eight per cent.
Within the online casino category, nearly half (48 per cent) of all casino wagers were on slots, nearly a third (32 per cent) on table games with a live dealer, and the remainder (19 per cent) on computer-based table games.
