People in Ontario now have the option to place sports bets in person, rather than just online. [Image: Shutterstock.com]
A new option for bettors
Sports bettors in Ontario now have an array of land-based options if they want to place wagers in person. The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has allowed each of its casino service providers to begin opening retail sports books at their properties in Canada’s most-populated province.
Ten casinos have gotten their retail sports betting offerings up and running
Since the announcement on Friday, at least ten casinos have gotten their retail sports betting offerings up and running. These are in addition to the online sports betting options that people in the province already had access to.
Some casinos quick off the mark
Ontario is home to many casinos, with big companies like Great Canadian Entertainment and Caesars Entertainment managing some of these properties. The former has ten casinos in the province and has rolled out dedicated sportsbook lounges at four of them: Shorelines Casino Belleville, Elements Casino Brantford, Pickering Casino Resort, and the Great Blue Heron Casino.
Other properties don’t have sports betting lounges, but do offer self-service sports betting kiosks. Kambi Group recently revealed that it will provide the on-property sportsbooks at Great Canadian Entertainment’s Ontario casinos.
give our service providers a stake in the sports gaming market”
OLG president and CEO Duncan Hannay spoke about the hard work from the gaming industry and parts of the Ontarian government that facilitated the rollout of retail sportsbooks. In the press releaseDuncan said that sportsbooks in casinos will give customers an integrated and diverse experience, as well as “give our service providers a stake in the sports gaming market, and bring more jobs and economic benefits to host communities.”
Big business in Ontario
Ontario’s regulated online sports betting market went live in April and there are now over 20 online sportsbooks in operation. It is the first regulated online gambling market in the country in which many private operators can compete with one another.
In its second quarter, Ontario’s online gambling market took in revenue of CA$267m (US$196m), an increase of almost 65% from the first quarter of operation.
The launch of the sector was made possible after federal politicians gave the green light to single-event sports betting. The spread of legal sports betting across the US was one of the key reasons for Canada following suit. Provinces were able to start allowing single-event sports betting in August 2021.
