It’s taken nearly three years of work, but today is the day that Ontario online gambling finally goes live. Residents in the province are now able to bet on casino games and sporting events via websites and mobile apps.
Several operators have gone live already, including FanDuel, BetMGM, Rush Street, Unibet, Bet365, FanDuel and 888. Also up and running are PointsBet Canada and theScore Bet, among others. They are all under the regulatory watch of iGaming Ontario, which is part of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.
This all began when the province unveiled plans to put an end to the monopoly held by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation. New legislation was then rolled out in 2020 which paved the way for the licensing of Ontario online gambling operators.
To be clear, online gambling did exist in the province prior to this. However, it was strictly run by the Provincial Lottery , even though players could still access the “gray market” online casinos from offshore. But now, Ontario online gambling is much more transparent.
All of this is not without controversy, though. Many of the land based casino operators are concerned about how online casinos will effect their revenues, and perhaps even their jobs. They’re also upset that the brick and mortar casinos are being taxed at a higher rate.