Seven predictions about Alberta’s online gambling industry
We pulled out the crystal ball to predict how Alberta will fare once it launches its open online gambling market on July 13. Also, Great Canadian Entertainment faces a second fine from the AGCO.
On Monday (July 13), Alberta officially launches its regulated online gambling sector, joining Ontario as the only two Canadian provinces with an open market.
(Editor’s note: Gaming News Canada will be in Edmonton for opening day and the weekly newsletter will be delivered one day earlier than usual, on July 14. For continued coverage of the countdown to Alberta’s market launch, follow us on X.)
What will the launch mean for the gambling industry in the Great White North? We slapped on our swami hats, cracked our knuckles and peered into our crystal ball for some key predictions.
Let’s start with what might be the boldest prediction:
Alberta’s open market will be so successful it will finally force other Canadian provinces to follow suit and launch regulated sectors in their provinces.
With one-third of the population of Ontario, Alberta will be hard-pressed to come close to Ontario’s revenue figures, but we still expect Alberta’s numbers to be huge with 49 operators already registered with the regulator – Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis (AGLC) - and going through the licensing process with the Alberta iGaming Corporation. In difficult economic times, with provinces desperate for revenue and no ability to stop citizens from gambling in the unregulated grey market, to continue to say no to regulating online gambling will not only appear unwise it will increasingly leave citizens in other provinces unprotected. British Columbia recently reported it believes nearly half of its citizens are gambling via unregulated platforms. In Québec, which has been notoriously headstrong against regulating, the Québec Online Gambling Coalition estimates more than $300 million in tax revenue is lost each year to Quebecers gambling via some 2,000 unregulated sites available to citizens, leaving them unprotected. Once Alberta launches, there will be increased pressure for other provinces to follow suit. Expect B.C. to be close behind, followed by the other western provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Then, maybe, Québec and, finally, Atlantic Canada.Alberta will create a better model for collaboration with First Nations. Two per cent of gross gambling revenue from the open market will go to Alberta’s First Nations communities, who already are well integrated in the province’s retail gambling industry. Alberta is calling this “economic reconciliation,” and the impact on First Nations could be transformative. Alberta is even hoping First Nations will directly get in on the market. This should be a great blueprint for other provinces.
There will be better player protection from Day 1. This is not exactly a bold prediction considering Alberta will feature a centralized self-exclusion system from launch day, unlike Ontario, which took four years to deliver such a system after it launched. Also, Alberta’s centralized system will include retail gambling. Also, responsible and problem gambling programs are getting a one per cent cut of revenue, slightly more than the cut that goes to such programs in Ontario. As we say ad nauseum, robust responsible gambling programs are key to a sustainable industry.
Alberta will do a better job on transparency. Ontario was slow to offer industry metrics out of the gate. While Ontario now offers monthly reporting, it could still do better by releasing operator metrics so the public can truly evaluate the health of the market. We think Alberta will be more transparent from the start and offer more information about how its market is performing.
More than 70 per cent of grey market operators will move to Alberta’s regulated sector in the first year. Alberta is gunning for a 70 per cent conversion rate of operators from the grey to the white market in the early going, but we think they will do even better before a full year is out. That’s because Alberta wisely followed Ontario’s lead to create a truly open market, offers online casinos, limited regulation and fair taxation precisely to entice unregulated operators to come into the light. The most recent statistics from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario estimate over 91 per cent of former grey market operators are now regulated.
PlayAlberta will either be sold, or its performance will surprise you. We believe one of two things will happen to the only legal legacy online operator – PlayAlberta will either be sold or it will surprise you with how well it competes. We’re guessing it’s more likely to be the latter considering the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) continues to surprise by taking some 20 per cent of the Ontario market. Expect PlayAlberta to follow OLG’s playbook. It will be forced to improve and will convince a sizeable number of Albertans that betting via the provincially-run operator means 100 per cent of the proceeds will remain in the province.
Albertans will complain about gambling ads. Big, bold prediction, we know. Of course, Albertans will complain because any launch, regardless of limits on ads, will by its very nature come with a robust acquisition period. But, as we’ve seen in Ontario, the ads will decrease. In the short term, the ads will provide a boost to Alberta media companies in desperate need of revenue (but, sadly, too late for Rogers-owned Sportsnet 960 which went off the air Monday).
Ready for expansion into Alberta? Set a solid foundation for your provincial growth with a SOC2 compliant full-service iGaming platform partner. Learn more at bedegaming.com.
Another day, another fine for Great Canadian Entertainment
Eight days after learning the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario was issuing a $120,000 fine against Great Canadian Entertainment for allowing the use of unauthorized gaming system software at Ontario casinos, the hotel/casino operator is facing more punitive action from the same regulatory body.
The AGCO announced yesterday a $170,000 fine to Great Canadian for “failing to adequately identify, assess and monitor high-risk patrons and report suspicious activity, including potential money laundering indicators” at Pickering Casino Resort.
From the release: An AGCO compliance audit . . . identified several failures by GCE to properly assess and track high-risk patrons that were not subject to required enhanced scrutiny. The review also found that required Suspicious Transaction Reports were not filed in a number of cases where patrons showed potential money laundering indicators
Ontario’s gaming standards require casino operators to have effective measures in place to identify and respond to suspicious activity – including suspected money laundering.
Great Canadian Entertainment provided Gaming News Canada with this statement in response to the AGCO announcement:
We accept the findings of AGCO’s audit and the importance of a robust and comprehensive regulatory regime that maintains the highest standards for the conduct of gaming in Ontario. Adhering to such standards will continue to be foundational for our operations moving forward.
Alberta’s move to a regulated iGaming model on the 13th July of this year represents a significant step forward for Canada’s digital gaming market, setting clear expectations for robust identity verification, fraud prevention and compliance from day one.
As the market takes shape, you can be confident you’re working with a proven partner. We already support more than 65% of licensed operators in Ontario, helping them meet FINTRAC‑compliant KYC requirements at scale, without compromising speed or player experience.
For more on GBG Plc, visit our website.
ConnexOntario executive director calls for more funding
The executive director of ConnexOntario says the non-profit organization needs more government support to help deal with the spike in calls to the 24-hour problem gambling helping.
Nerin Kaur spoke with Global News reporter Isaac Callan earlier this week about “a wave of new, more complex calls for help” because of Ontario’s regulated sports betting and online gaming market over the past four-plus years.
In 2019-20, ConnexOntario reported a total of 92,780 interactions between callers and the organization’s workers with the average call lasting under eight minutes. Over the past year, that number has increased to 155,391 interactions and calls now lasting on average almost 12 minutes.
“Our staff are seeing more demand on our service. The calls are changing; there’s more complexity with the calls,” Kaur told Callan. “People are requiring more supportive listening, more understanding about the mental health and addiction sector, more education, more ability to follow up with them, as well as help them set clear expectations and what to see when they want to access care.”
In April, Canadian Gaming Association president/CEO Paul Burns pointed to an increased awareness around ConnexOntario (licensed operators and OLG must highlight Connex Ontario in advertising and marketing products.
“The Connex (information) is present in virtually every ad; it’s had billions of ad impressions,” Burns told Gaming News Canada. “The awareness (of ConnexOntario) went from hardly known to well known, which is great. That’s part of what having a regulated market (can do by) allowing regulated operators to advertise, share information and provide education so people know how to use the product properly.
“That’s a positive.”
Kaur told Global News that the organization currently receives $4.2 million in funding from the provincial government, and the four-per-cent increase for 2025-26 simply isn’t enough.
“I think the government needs to invest more in the prevention promotion piece and the supportive piece for the community sector to support the demand in problem gambling,” she said.
As Alberta prepares to open, trust will define the next chapter of Canadian iGaming
With Alberta’s regulated iGaming market set to open, attention has largely focused on which operators will enter the province. But new research commissioned by @Betty suggests the more interesting story is how Albertans already think about online gaming.
Conducted by Angus Reid Forum, the research found that seven in ten respondents in Alberta consider it to be a safe activity. Awareness of online casino products is also widespread, pointing to a market where consumers are already familiar with digital gaming.
Those findings reinforce an important point as Alberta’s regulated market takes shape: success won’t simply come from being present. Operators will need to earn trust through transparency, responsible gaming and differentiated player experiences.
Betty will officially launch in Alberta next week, bringing its slots-first online gaming experience to Canada’s newest regulated market.
Wagering wave continues with World Cup
The host countries have been sent to the sidelines, but we expect the wave of wagering to continue in the final two weeks of a fascinating men’s World Cup tournament.
The favourites – France, Spain, Argentina, England – are still around as the stars (Mbappe, Kane, Haaland, Messi) continue to shine. Gaming News Canada reached out to several private operators and provincial lottery and gaming corporations on Monday for some news and notes about the betting activity.
A BetMGM spokesperson let us know that tournament “has exceeded our expectations so far and is already the most-bet World Cup in BetMGM history”. The highlights include:
Overall betting volume has “roughly” tripled from the 2022 World Cup. While the expanded format has meant more betting opportunities, wagering has significantly increased on a per-game basis. Compared with the same stage of the tournament four years ago, wagers and handle in Ontario have both increased by more than 100 per cent.
“The growth reflects several factors, including the expanded tournament format, a broader range of betting markets, greater access to legal sports betting and the fact that the World Cup is being played in North America,” said the spokesperson in an email to Gaming News Canada.
Ontario customers have delivered one of the most active markets for futures betting in the tourney, and 11 per cent of all bets placed on the World Cup champion have come from Ontario – the highest share of any market.
Monday night’s win by Belgium over Team USA was the most-bet soccer game in BetMGM history, eclipsing the World Cup final between Argentina and France four years ago.
The top five games among BetMGM bettors to date: USA-Belgium, Mexico-England, USA-Bosnia, USA-Paraguay and USA-Turkiye.
From the trading crew at FanDuel:
Morocco’s win over Canada in the Round of 16 was the third most-popular match of the tournament for FD customers (behind Canada/Bosnia-Herzegovina and England-Mexico).
70 per cent of wagers were on Canada to beat the Moroccans and the top anytime goal scorer props were Ismael Saibari, Jonathan David and Achraf Hakimi.
So far, France has been the most popular pick among Ontario bettors across key futures markets including to reach the semi-finals and final, and to win the tournament. Spain and Argentina are the second and third most-popular selections to win the whole enchilada.
French scoring sensation Kylian Mbappe continues to be the popular choice to win the Golden Boot followed by England captain Harry Kane and Argentina footy legend Lionel Messi.
From the Proline trading team at OLG:
The Canada-Morocco meeting in the Round of 16 attracted the highest number of pre-match bets before it was eclipsed by Sunday’s thrilling Mexico-England game.
Soufiane Rahmini’s goal in the 99th minute to finish Morocco’s 3-nil win over the Canadians made winners of an overwhelming number of bettors (73 per cent) taking the over-2.5 goals.
One Proline digital customer turned a $100 wager on a 3-nil Morocco victory into $1,200.
61 per cent of wagers had Morocco winning in regulation with 26 per cent on a Canadian win.
Both Mexico-England and Canada-Morocco attracted more pre-game betting activity than the Seattle-New England Super Bowl back in February.
Also, 15 World Cup games so far drew more bets t han the Canada-USA men’s hockey final at the Winter Olympics.
AGLC has seen a 21-per-cent rise in the total number of bets on PlayAlberta for June/July compared with the same two months a year ago while the amount wagered is up 41 per cent.
The most popular games with PA customers: Mexico-England, Canada-Morocco, Argentina-Cape Verde, Paraguay-France and USA-Belgium.
GNC also learned that the five most popular games with bet365 customers in Ontario so far are Mexico-England, Canada-Morocco, Brazil-Norway, Portugal-Croatia and Paraguay-France.
In other World Cup news, betting style:
In The Closing Line, Dustin Gouker wrote that Team USA’s run to the Round of 16, games being played on U.S. grass (turf, not cannabis. . . .) and the presence of prediction markets have all combined to attract robust betting activity around the tournament.
The tournament – and the performance of the U.S. team before it got beaten like a rented mule by Belgium on Monday night - has been very, very good for Caesars Sportsbook.
The absolute clown show by FIFA that resulted in the reinstatement of U.S. star Folarin Balogun for Monday’s game created some havoc for sportsbooks, reported The Athletic’s Doug Kezirian.
Hey, what would a major sporting event be like if there wasn’t moaning about sports betting ads?
PokerStars job cuts to affect Canadian staff
There was reporting of the exclusive sort yesterday from Zak Thomas-Akoo at NEXT.io that Flutter Entertainment will be trimming staff working for PokerStars in Canada, Europe, the UK and Ireland as part of an international restructuring of the brand.
The news doesn’t come as a surprise, given Flutter’s decision back in May to fold PokerStars’ online poker, casino and sports betting operations into FanDuel. It’s expected that PokerStars will be integrated into the FanDuel product when it launches in Alberta.
PokerStars was founded in our home and native land two decades ago and is believed to employ hundreds of people from IT infrastructure to technical compliance.
Gaming News Canada reached out to PokerStars for comment on how the news would affect its Canadian operation and received this statement from a spokesperson:
PokerStars can confirm that it is proposing a number of organisational changes as part of its ongoing transformation programme, which includes integrating its online poker offering with Flutter’s leading brands to better serve customers.
This reflects a broader shift to a more locally focused operating model, as the business responds to an increasingly complex regulatory and competitive landscape across many of the markets in which it operates.
While we have sought to minimise the impact on colleagues, including through opportunities for redeployment, the proposals will unfortunately result in a number of roles being affected. We are communicating with those impacted as part of the process and will provide them with the support they need throughout.
Flutter has previously migrated PokerStars into its Sisal and Snai brands in Italy, and in FanDuel in the U.S. with more to come, including in the UK and Ireland.
Steven Salz resigns as CEO of Rivalry
Buried in a news release at the end of last week from Rivalry that it was transferring to Tier 2 of the TSX Venture Exchange was an announcement that Steven Salz had stepped down as chief executive officer – although he remains a director of the company. (“Buried” might be a tad hyperbolic given the communique was only four paragraphs.)
As Tom Nightingale reported for Canadian Gaming Business, Rivalry halted its gaming operations back in February with several executives and/or board members leaving the company in April.
The “demotion” to Tier 2 on the TSX, explained the news release, “follows the company’s inability to complete reinstatement to Tier 1 within the prescribed period and its current inability to satisfy the applicable Tier 1 continued listing requirements”.
It’s the latest chapter in an unfortunate narrative for Rivalry, one of the first operators to enter Ontario’s regulated gambling market in April 2022. The Toronto-based company which was co-founded by Salz and entered Ontario as an esports-focused operator hopeful that its local roots, a unique marketing strategy and later investing in its own igaming product, would create a path to success.
Gaming News Canada reached out to Salz via email for comment on this departure as CEO but hadn’t received a reply when the newsletter was sent this morning.
People on the Move
Former Light & Wonder Chief Operating Officer Daniel O’Donoghue is named COO at Aristocrat Interactive.
Betr promotes Alex Ursa to Chief Operating Officer, Alex Kuwada to Chief Marketing Officer, and Mike Denevi to Chief Content Officer.
RotoWire co-founder Peter Schoenke is the new Chief Executive Officer at Fantasy Life.
VGW founder and CEO Laurence Escalante resigns from the sweepstakes company amidst legal troubles.
After almost 15 years, the past four-plus as Senior VP of Compliance, Lindsay Slader is leaving GeoComply.
Ex-Gaming Innovation Group senior veep Ryan Collinge is appointed Executive VP, Group Business Development and Strategic Partnerships at Soft2Bet.
Nuvei appoints Samir Zabaneh as Chief Operating Officer and David McLaughlin as Chief Financial Officer.
Germany’s federal gambling regulator GGL appoints Christian Hochgreb as Chair, replacing Sandro Kirchner.
After almost 13 years, the past five-plus as Senior Vice President, Global Partnerships, Integrity Services, Andy Cunningham leaves Sportradar. Also taking their respective leaves are VP of Product Operations Odds Mark Culvert and Ben Cattliff from his Senior Program Manager position.
After 15 years, including the past 19 months as Vice President of Sales, Jim Warrick takes his leave from Everi Holdings.
Sally Corbishley leaves White Hat Gaming and her Vice President, Players role to rejoin bet365 as Head of Operations Change.
Zach Gayner, ex of DraftKings and BetMGM, is named Vice President, Global Social Media at Seminole Hard Rock Support Services.
Fredrik Bjurle, formerly of Evolution, is appointed Vice President, Product – Live Casino at Pragmatic Play.
GBG Plc promotes Craig Sutton to Head of AI for GBG Co.
Yothika Chetty is promoted to Head of Compliance at Play’n GO.
Dillon Borgida departs Underdog and his role as Vice President, VIP & Player Experience.
Mate Vrdoljak joins FEG as Group Head of Sportsbook & Trading.
Playtech promotes Michael Bedulskis to Head of Network – iPoker.com.
Andre Genovese, the former Head of Games Operation at Aristocrat Interactive, joins Anakatech as Head of Casino.
After 10 years including the past 15 months as Senior Marketing Director, Dennis Algreen exits SBC.
OLG promotes Anne Foam to Director, Growth & Performance Marketing.
Light & Wonder promotes Packisamy Kandasamy to Director, Software Engineering.
Brian Roth, ex of Gambling.com Group is appointed Canada and U.S. Market Lead at Mr. Gamble.
NEXT.io brings in former Playnet CHRO Karolina Skorek as Head of Human Resources. James Clark is appointed Marketing Director.
Bjorn Pace has a new role at evoke as Market Lead – Canada, Ontario and Portugal.
George Varelas has a new title at Novibet: Head of Product – Sportsbook.
Tommy O’Brien joins IGT as General Manager of Sales.
Courtney Nicoletta has a new title at OLG: Director of Customer Care Player Services.
Tyler Black, ex of Blizzard Entertainment and Kabam, joins Riot Games as Director of Product Management for its Cross Valorant operations.
Jack Duffy is leaving Kambi and his role as Sportsbook Regulatory Lead.
Alexander Westrell is departing FDJ United and his role as International Communications Strategy Director.
Former Superbet CMO Rich Lee is appointed Vice President, Marketing at Product Madness.
Richard Crow is appointed Head of CRM & Commercial Operations at NEXT.io while Nadine Sniedze Skuja comes on board as a People & Talent Partner.
Gretta Kochkonyan has a new role at SoftSwiss as Head of Operations – Game Aggregator.
Rhys Hatton has a new title at Light & Wonder: Director, Product Strategy. Nathan Pimentel is promoted to PTGE Tables Studio Lead.
Gordon Stevenson, former Communications Manager at Penn Entertainment, joins New York-based The Lede Company as Assistant Director, Strategic Communications (Sports).
After almost five years including the past 14 months as Senior Manager, Operator Relations, Matthew Fisher exits iGaming Ontario.
Derek Hoggard, ex of Hollywood Casino Greektown and Penn Entertainment, is named Senior Casino Marketing Manager at MGM Resorts International at MGM Grand Detroit.
Joel Feinberg, ex of Google and Major League Baseball, joins FanDuel as a Lead Product Manager.
Leigh Clements leaves Light & Wonder to join Hacksaw Gaming as an Account Director.
Georgina Lott has a new title at Xtremepush: Account Manager Team Lead – APAC. Gaurav Wadhwa is promoted to Account Manager.
Destanie Banks has a new role at Catena Media as a Commercial Partnerships Manager.
Robert Tjornebro joins Games Global as a Content Specialist.
Entain promotes Finn Rogers to Group Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Manager.
Astghik Dallakyan comes on board SoftConstruct as a Product Operations Manager.
After more than eight years, the past three as Brand Manager, Matt Bramley leaves LeoVegas Group.
Nathaniel Aquino, ex of Penn Entertainment, joins NetGaming as an Account Manager.
Konstantinos Pliatsikas has a new role at Kaizen Gaming as a Finance Operations Manager.
The Northern Super League promotes Jessica Whitteker to Chief of Staff.
The Athletic promotes Shelby Blackley to Director, Global SEO and AI Search.
Bailey Weigel-Rose has a new role at NBA HQ as Director, Content Partner Integration.
Some tweaks in business strategy prompted the NBA to let go “dozens” of people from head office last week.
Finally, lousy, lousy news Tuesday from Rogers Sports & Media that it’s shutting down six radio stations in Calgary, Vancouver, Halifax and Kitchener. The announcement came 24 hours after Rogers Communications let it be known it would pay $4.35 billion to buy out Larry Tanenbaum/Kilmer Sports Group from a 25-per-cent stake in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment.
Classified (Jobs) Information
On the Home Front
There’s an opening at Legend’s offices in Halifax for a Senior Data Analyst.
Loto‑Québec has an opening for a Tech Lead.
Scopely has a hybrid/remote opportunity in Canada or south of the border for a Senior Product Manager – Live Ops.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario is seeking a Senior Human Resources Business Partner.
Tourism Calgary is on the hunt for a Vice President, Communications & External Affairs.
In Toronto, content/streaming company Tubi is looking for a Senior Manager, Creator & Content Partnerships – Canada.
Live Nation Entertainment has need of an Associate Manager, Digital Content.
Hockey Canada is seeking nominations for its Board of Directors.
The Calgary Stampeders are looking for a Manager, Customer Service & Inside Sales.
York University is hiring an Associate Director, Operations and Business Service – Athletics & Recreation.
Blue Ant Media has an opening in Toronto for an Associate Editor.
USports is in the market for a Manager of International Programs.
In Toronto, Yeti is hiring a Public Relations & Earned Media Specialist.
In Calgary, Sleeman Breweries is seeking a Trade Marketing Manager.
The Ontario Hockey Federation is hiring a Manager, Officiating.
True Sports has need of a Marketing Coordinator – Retail & Partnerships.
South of the Border
Hard Rock Digital has several openings with its online casino operations team.
DraftKings is looking for a Director, People Analytics.
The Downtown Grand Las Vegas is seeking a Corporate Director of Slot Operations.
Also in Vegas, Pavilion Payments is searching for a Director of IT Operations.
And there’s another opportunity in Sin City, this one at Aristocrat for a Senior Partner Success Manager.
BetMGM has an opportunity for a Senior Business Protection Specialist and there’s a hybrid opening in New Jersey for a Senior Data Engineer.
The Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation in Highland, CA, is hiring a Mobile & E-Commerce Content Specialist.
Fanatics is seeking a Manager, Compliance.
In New York, FanDuel is in the market for a Lead Product Manager.
The National Council on Problem Gambling is hiring a Communications Manager.
Also in the Big Apple, Better Collective is looking for a SEO Commercial Content Writer.
Microsoft is searching for a Director of Marketing, Minecraft Entertainment & Experiences.
The Athletic has a remote opening for a Senior Executive Video Producer.
NBA HQ is in the market for an Associate Counsel, Player Matters.
Sports business media outlet Sportico has an opportunity in New York for a Senior Director, Events.
Nike is hiring a Global Senior Director, Sport Energy Marketing.
The NHL is seeking a Manager, International Social Media.
The Boston Red Sox are searching for a Senior Data Analyst, Baseball Analytics.
Ticketing business eventellect is hiring a Director, Partner Strategy – NBA.
Across the Ponds
Aristocrat is hiring a Director, Compliance Audit – iLottery & Interactive.
FairPlay Sports Media is in hiring mode for a Director of Data.
In Brisbane, Australia, ZeroFlucs is searching for a Senior Data & AI Engineer.
In Melbourne, Jersey Road Talent has several employment opportunities.
Also in Melbourne, Superbet has a couple of openings on its Legal team.
In London, Betway Global is on the lookout for a Senior Group Category Manager – Marketing.
ARRISE is seeking Game Designers, Mathematicians and Game Artists.
MediaTroopers is in the market for a Development Team Lead.
SoftSwiss has openings for a Senior Scrum Master and a Middle Frontend Developer – React.
In Dublin, Xtremepush is hiring a Product Designer.
In Rio de Janeiro, Light & Wonder is looking for a Regional Account Manager.
Tennis Australia is on the lookout for a Head of Commercial.
IMG has an opportunity in Finland for a Social Media Manager, NHL.
Reading and Reflecting
Segev LLP legal beagles Marius Adomnica and Tim Tam are delivering a tutorial of sorts for operators and suppliers going west to Alberta via SBC Webinar at high noon (ET) today. You can register here.
An op-ed in The Toronto Star by a family doctor and clinical researcher, accused the Douglas Ford government of turning a blind eye to problem gambling (ironically, the website page on which the piece appears includes ads for OLG’s Lotto Max product.
The op-ed sparked a LinkedIn post from the founder of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Social Ventures Zone and the post promoting that . . . er. . . post, prompted a reply from former iGaming Ontario chief of staff Mitch Davidson setting the record straight on the money spent in Ontario’s regulated gambling industry.
There’s reporting by Shane Donnelly at Casinos.com that online casino revenue in Canada was projected to hit $9.6 billion in 2025.
The managing director of DAZN Bet Canada spoke with Mark Keast of Casino.org last week about the operator’s new Ontario business and its plans for Alberta.
Coolbet will shut down its Alberta business ahead of the launch of the province’s regulated market.
Kambi’s latest Canadian partner is Pure Casino Entertainment, which will lean on the sports betting technology company to support its online and retail sports wagering products in Alberta.
Canadian business and tech media outlet The Logic reported Friday a survey of its subscribers reveals not much of an appetite for prediction markets in our home and native land.
In last week’s dispatch, Dave Briggs reported on a record month for online casino handle in Ontario. It was the same story for legal igaming in the U.S. of A. for May.
We’re not surprised Jordan Spieth is facing flak for blaming harassment and abuse of pro golfers on sports wagering.
The proposal by the MLB Players Association to ban prop betting may not be pure folly but it’s folly of some type, wrote Jeff Edelstein.
There was reporting late Monday from ESPN’s David Purdum that a former DraftKings trader faces felony charges from a betting scheme involving an NCAA basketball player.
Robyn McNeil of Gambling Insider was in the author’s chair for this Q and A with Keith Whyte, the former boss of the National Council on Problem Gambling who now has his own responsible gaming consulting business.
Washington, D.C.-based Arnold Ventures announced yesterday 12 new research grants to support independent analysts of the sports betting landscape in the U.S. of A.
An economist in the UK is arguing that there’s a flaw in the methodology behind the World Advertising Research Centre’s forecasts on gambling advertising spending.
Lawmakers in Ohio want to move forward with banning online sports betting, reported Rob Fletcher for NEXT.io.
BetMGM chief revenue officer Matt Prevost did the Q and A thing with Kirk Geller of Global Gaming Insider.
SoftSwiss executive Gretta Kochkonyan has some thoughts on the best ways the gaming industry is being reshaped using AI.
Reading of the rather excellent sort from Scott Longley in Earnings + More on the return on Penn’s return to focusing on its retail casino business.
Flutter, bet365 and KTO Group are in trouble with Brazil’s finance ministry for allegedly failing to comply with the rules around advertising.
Dustin Gouker figures that banning prop bets in U.S. states with legal sports wagering is a long, long shot.
Speaking of prop wagers, NCAA president Charlie Baker appeared on CBS’s Face the Nation show over the weekend to talk about his hopes to limit those types of bets.
The chair of the Florida Gaming Commission is calling on legislators to do more in the fight against illegal gambling operators.
The American Gaming Association announced Monday the Class of 2026 for induction into its Gaming Hall of Fame.
Gambling Insider managing editor Marcus DiNitto interviewed the founders of ProphetX and 365Prediction about their hopes and dreams for competing in the PM space.
Two people involved with the UK government have been charged on allegations of election betting offences.
Are we alone in raising a Spockian eyebrow when reading almost $34 million was legally wagered on table tennis in the state of Colorado last month?
Kalshi is once again going to court, this time because of a dispute with the Mescalaro Apache Tribe in New Mexico.
Tom Rundle, the CEO of DFS business Dabble, did the Q and A thing with Steve Bittenbender of Gambling Insider.
An economics professor at an Irish university has launched a Substack blog on the business part of sports wagering.
North Carolina’s new state budget includes a sports betting tax hike for licensed operators, a new prediction market tax and allows gamblers to deduct losses on their taxes.
Finally, what do you get when you put together on stage a basketball legend and two CEOs? Well, in this case, it’s a sports business leadership panel which will appear at this fall’s SBC Summit 2026 in Lisbon.
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