Ontario Sports Betting Guide

Ontario Legal Sports Betting Overview

Ontario Sports Betting Summary

On April 4, 2022, Ontario launched the first regulated sports betting market in Canada. Any sportsbook wanting to operate in the province now needs a local license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission Ontario (AGCO). Licensees are then supervised and supported by iGaming Ontario.

Having a local regulatory body that thoroughly assesses every betting site makes Ontario one of Canada's safest places to bet. Other provinces in the country are expected to follow in Ontario’s footsteps soon and regulate sports betting and online gaming. So, for now, all eyes are on Ontario.

The regulation also allows sportsbook operators to open retail sportsbooks in the province. Previously, only PROLINE, backed by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), was allowed to offer legal betting. PROLINE will continue to operate its retail betting locations with the recently launched PROLINE+ accepting single-game wagers through its desktop site and app.

Many leading gambling operators from the United States and other countries have already launched licensed sportsbooks in Ontario. As of September 2022, there are 24 online sportsbook operators in the province. FanDuel, BetMGM, Bet365, and Caesars were only a few of the prestige names among Ontario’s first batch of licensed gambling sites. Betting brands like DraftKings, Betway and Bally Bet have since launched in the province.

After years of betting sites operating within the grey area of the law, the newly regulated market brings Ontario gamblers safe and legal betting opportunities. To get you up to speed, our comprehensive guide explains everything you need to know about the new regulation and what it means for ON players.

How to Place a Bet in Ontario

The first step in your exciting betting journey is to sign up and create your account with an Ontario sportsbook operator. Signing up is safe and easy; just follow the steps below and you can be placing your first bets in minutes:

1. Choose an Online Sportsbook

   There is a wide selection of regulated sportsbooks available in Ontario, so shop around for the best one for you. Once you choose a sportsbook, click on one of the links above to visit the bookmaker’s site.

2. Download the App

   Most online sportsbooks offer a mobile app you can download from the operator’s website or the Apple App or Google Play Store. If you are downloading the app, install it on your Apple or Android device. Alternatively, you can access the sportsbook’s website from your mobile or desktop device.

3. Sign up

   Click on the “Sign Up” button (which may also say “Register” or “Join”) and follow the quick steps to create your account.

   You will need to provide personal information, including full name, contact details, and date of birth. Complying with AGCO requirements, Ontario sportsbooks will ask you to verify your account by sending copies of documents like your photo ID, proof of address and payment method. However, you can do this after you have signed up.

4. Make your First Deposit/Claim Your Welcome Offer

   Once signed up, visit the sportsbook’s cashier section. Select a payment method and amount to deposit and follow the steps to fund your sportsbook account.

   Most sportsbooks offer new players a welcome bonus that will be credited to your account once you make a qualifying deposit. In some cases, you will have to enter a unique promo code to claim the offer. If you have a code, enter it in the allocated space.

5. Place Your First Wager

   Most welcome offers provide you with bonus funds for betting. To wager with cash and bonus funds, you need to add a selection to your bet slip, choose your stake, and place your bet.

6. Request a Withdrawal

   If your bet wins, revisit the cashier section and follow the steps required to withdraw your winnings.

Who is Eligible to Bet in ON?

The legal betting age in Ontario is 19, which is slightly higher than in several other Canadian provinces, including Alberta, Manitoba, and Quebec, where you can legally gamble at 18 years old.

You don’t have to live in Ontario to gamble legally in the province. As long as you are old enough to gamble and physically present within ON borders, you can bet legally from anywhere in the province. If you are betting from an app, you must enable your device's geolocation services and allow the sportsbook to detect your location before placing bets.

Latest Ontario Sports Betting Updates

Timeline for Sports Betting in Ontario

• August 30, 2022: iGaming Ontario publishes Q1 figures from across gaming as a whole, with $162m generated in revenue after Ontario gamblers placed over $4bn in wagers.

• August 9, 2022: BetMGM becomes an official partner of the NFL in Canada.

• August 8, 2022: The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation launches a new mobile app that combines the PROLINE Bet Builder function with its PROLINE+ online betting platform.

• August 1, 2022: Betway launches as a licensed sportsbook in Ontario.

• July 12, 2022: ACGO registers Bally Bet as a licensed sportsbook operator.

• July 1, 2022: FanDuel expands its partnership with the NFL and TSN (the NFL’s Canadian broadcast partner) to include Ontario.

• June 22, 2022: The NBA signs a betting partnership with PROLINE+.

• June 16, 2022: The MLB announces a betting partnership with PROLINE+.

• June 1, 2022: theScore announces it is leaving the US betting market to focus on Canada.

• May 18, 2022: DraftKings Sportsbook launches in Ontario.

• April 4, 2022: Regulated online sports betting launched in the province and sportsbooks with AGCO licenses become available to ON players.

• April 1, 2022: Caesars, Bwin, and PartySports all gain regulatory licenses in Ontario.

• March 21, 2022: The Kambi Group becomes a regulated sportsbook operator in Ontario.

• March 15, 2022: Leading UK-based sports betting brand bet365 becomes Ontario’s 12th regulated online sportsbook.

• March 11, 2022: FanDuel obtains regulatory approval as Ontario’s 11th regulated online sports betting site.

• March 9, 2022: After Rush Street International gains regulatory approval, the brand’s BetRivers sportsbook announces its plans to launch on April 4.

• March 3, 2022: 888 Holdings confirms it has successfully obtained an iGaming license with the AGCO. The sportsbook will launch on April 4.

• February 2022: theScore Bet and PointsBet announce that the AGCO has approved their registration and plan to launch on April 4.

• January 2022: The Government of Ontario announces it is launching regulated sports betting on April 4, 2022. The AGCO sets out its regulatory requirements and starts licensing operators.

• September 2021: The AGCO completes and releases its regulatory standards for Ontario’s upcoming iGaming market.

• August 2021: OLG’s PROLINE+ launches to sports bettors in the province, allowing them to place wagers online and on single events.

• August 2021: The Canadian Government signs Bill C-218 into law, meaning each province has the right to regulate and legalize online sports betting. This opens the doors for independent operators to launch in territories that choose to welcome online sports betting.

• June 2021: The Senate approves Bill C-218.

• April 2021: The House approves Bill C-218.

• February 2021: Bill C-218 receives a second reading and gains more support.

• November 2020: Ontario’s government announces that the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) will manage the province’s anticipated online sports betting market.

• February 2020: Private Member Kevin Waugh introduces Bill C-218 to amend the law that made sports betting illegal. However, the bill doesn’t get much attention.

• 2016: Bill C-221 faces heavy opposition from the governing party and fails after Bill C-290 failed the year before.

• 2015: Ontario launches its first regulated online casino, PlayOLG.ca.

Ontario Sports Betting Background

The Canadian government banned all forms of betting except horse race betting in 1982. This law was amended in 1985 to allow parlay betting at government-approved sportsbooks, with the aim of banning single-game wagering in Canada. Similarly, these amendments aimed to push players to use government-backed sportsbooks, like PROLINE, meaning revenue would come back to provincial governments. However, the law didn’t detail restrictions on wagering with international sportsbooks.

Research data from 2014 showed that Canadians bet nearly $16 billion a year on sports. Most of this money was wagered with international sportsbooks, meaning that extensive amounts of cash were leaving the country without taxation. Bills C-290 and C-220 were introduced in 2015 and 2016 to address these concerns and repeal the previous law banning single-game sports betting, but neither passed.

After years of pressure and debate, Bill C-218 legalized single-game sports betting on August 27, 2021. This bill allowed each province to regulate online sports betting, and Ontario announced its intentions to do so in January 2022. While the actual regulation wasn’t ready until April 4, 2022, the Government of Ontario launched the PROLINE+ site in late 2021 with single-game wagering.

Since the initial launch of sports betting, more brands have launched in Ontario including US heavyweight DraftKings. Betway also recently joined the market.

While PointsBet has released information on its performance since launching in the province, other operators have not offered up much information. It is hard to gauge how the market is performing without figures specific to sports betting.

Future of Ontario Sports Betting

The Ontario betting market is continuing to expand beyond the initial group of licensed sportsbooks in the province. There is no stated limit on how many licenses can be granted, but most of the major US sportsbooks brands have already launched in the state. The exception is Barstool Sportsbook, with Penn National Gaming announcing its theScore Bet brand would be its sole operator in ON. Many sportsbooks already in the province will also likely want to sign partnerships with local casinos to establish retail sportsbook venues.

How many new sportsbooks launch in the province may depend on betting handle figures released by the AGCO. As of August 2022, this information has not been released although iGaming Ontario (iGO) have published their own figures for the first quarter (April 4-June 30) of market operations across gaming as a whole – with more than $4bn in total wagers but just $162m in total gaming revenue from 492,000 active player accounts. However, this data does not include promotional wagers or recently regulated brands.

Ontario Sports Betting Locations

There are 29 land-based casinos in Ontario regulated by OLG, but none of them currently offer retail sports betting. The OLG also operates PROLINE, and Canadian bettors have been placing parlays at participating retail locations since PROLINE launched in 1992. Now, these locations have been upgraded to offer single-game wagering to customers. You can also create bet slips online with PROLINE+ and bring them into a PROLINE retail location to pay for the wager.

On February 1, 2022, the OLG launched the new PROLINE at retail lottery outlets and the PROLINE+ for online users. You can now visit the OLG retail locations and place bets on sports with same-day payouts up to $1,000. You will need to show an ID, but you don’t have to sign up to play in-store.

PROLINE is available in thousands of locations across Ontario. If you want to place sports bets from a retail lottery location, use OLG’s locator to find the retailers nearest to you.

Off-Track Betting Locations

Horse racing was once the only form of legal betting in Ontario for over a decade, and all wagering was regulated by the Ontario Racing Commission (ORC). In 2015 these regulatory responsibilities passed from ORC to the AGCO. There are 56 different off-track betting retailers in Ontario where you can go and place horse racing bets, each of which operates safely according to current Ontario gambling laws.

Ontario Responsible Gambling Resources

The AGCO has set out clear responsible-gambling measures in its regulations to ensure players are protected. The following are the responsible-gambling guidelines set by the regulator:

• Gambling bonuses must never be advertised to target minors.

• Advertising must not be false or deceptive.

• Advertising must not promote (or appear to promote) excessive play.

• Gambling operators must act to prevent bettors from playing excessively.

• Casino operators must implement responsible gambling controls.

• Sites and apps must offer information on the signs of problem gambling and options to address and control it.

• AGCO also requires all sportsbooks to display problem gambling support, including links to the government-backed free mental health service, ConnexOntario. In addition, the AGCO works with the OLG to create responsible gambling measures and ensure operators are following these restrictions.

Players can also find assistance with independent organizations like the Responsible Gambling Council (RGC), a Canada-wide company based in Toronto offering resources on spotting problem gambling, locations for help centers, and much more. Gamblers Anonymous is another organization providing similar support.

• Responsible Gambling Council – (416) 499-9800

• Gamblers Anonymous – (855) 222-5542

• ConnexOntario – (866) 531-2600

Teams to Bet on in Ontario

Ontario has plenty of professional sports teams for local fans to support, with some also available as betting options in North American major leagues. Canada also has its own professional leagues for six different sports. U Sports operates university varsity competitions across Canada, and Ontario has its own division called the Ontario University Athletics Association (OUA), with 20 different teams. There aren’t many professional women’s teams to get behind except the Toronto Six, an ice hockey team in the Premier Hockey Federation.

• Pro Sports

  • Toronto: Toronto Raptors (NBA), Toronto Blue Jays (MLB), Toronto Maple Leafs (NHL), Toronto FC (MLS), Toronto FC II (MLS Next Pro), Toronto Marlies (AHL), Toronto Six (PHF), Toronto Argonauts (CFL), Toronto Rock (NLL).

  • Ottawa: Ottawa Senators (NHL), Ottawa BlackJacks (CEBL), Ottawa Redblacks (CFL), Atletico Ottawa (CPL).

  • Hamilton: Hamilton Honey Badgers (CEBL), Hamilton Tiger-Cats (CFL), Forge FC (CPL).

  • Belleville: Belleville Senators (AHL).

  • Guelph: Guelph Nighthawks (CEBL).

  • St. Catharines: Niagara River Lions (CEBL).

  • Scarborough: Scarborough Shooting Stars (CEBL).
    

• College Sports

  • Brock Badgers: The wrestling program at Brock has excelled in recent years, with the men’s and women’s teams picking up multiple national championships over the past decade.

  • Carleton Ravens: The Ravens have a rivalry with the Ottowa Gee-Gees that dates back to 1955, with the teams playing a football game every year called the Panda Game. The Ravens are also Canada’s most successful basketball program, winning a record 16 W. P. McGee Trophies.

  • Guelph Gryphons: The Gryphons have seen some success with ice hockey, winning a University Cup in 1997. It also won a National Basketball championship in 1974.

  • Nipissing Lakers: The Lakers haven’t seen much sports success, with the men’s basketball team only making one appearance in the Ontario University Playoffs. The team has a rivalry with the Laurentian Voyageurs and competes for the 705 Challenge Cup across all sports results every year.

  • Ontario Tech Ridgebacks: Ice hockey is the biggest sport for the Ridgebacks, and the team managed to achieve a CIS National Ranking for the first time in its 2015-16 season.

  • Ottawa Gee-Gees: The Gee-Gees have won the Vanier Cup twice, and the women’s soccer team also won national championships in 1996 and 2018. In the most well-known rivalry in Canadian collegiate football, the Gee-Gees have won 33 Panda Games compared to the Ravens’ 13.

  • Queen’s Golden Gaels: The Queen’s Golden Gaels football program has achieved sustained success throughout its history, winning three Grey Cups and four Vanier Cups. The ice hockey team also challenged for the Stanley Cup three times at the turn of the twentieth century.

  • RMC Paladins: The Paladins currently compete in five different sports in the OUA, including fencing, hockey, rugby union, soccer, and volleyball.

  • Ryerson Rams: There has only ever been one national championship-winning team at Ryerson when the women’s volleyball team won in 2018.

  • Toronto Varsity Blues: A vast 43 athletics teams participate in U sports competitions for the Varsity Blues. The colours of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs were picked to match the Varsity Blues team.

  • Waterloo Warriors: Success has been inconsistent for the Warriors, but the team has previously won national championships in hockey, basketball, and women’s swimming.

  • Western Mustangs: Aside from boasting the most prominent university marching band in Canada, the Mustangs have won seven Vanier Cups for football. Its men’s squash team also won 36 consecutive provincial championships.

  • Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks: The school’s football team has picked up two Vanier Cup victories and 12 provincial championships. The Golden Hawks cheerleading program has also been very successful, with six national championship titles.

  • Windsor Lancers: Nine different sports are played at the University of Windsor, and the Lancers have won 87 provincial titles and 33 national titles. The track and field program is responsible for many of these victories.
    

• Women's Sport

  • Toronto Six: The Toronto Six is a women’s Premier Hockey Federation team founded in 2020 that plays at Canlan Ice Sports, York.In its two seasons, the team has come close to glory, losing in the semi-finals of the Isobel Cup to the eventual champions Boston Pride twice.

How does Ontario Compare to Other Provinces?

• Market Coverage

Ontario regulations allow sportsbooks to offer betting on many different sports, including college sports and eSports, whereas some other jurisdictions prohibit these markets. For example, you can’t bet on eSports in Virginia and you can’t place wagers on in-state college teams in New York. Ontario has shown its commitment to growing eSports betting markets by hosting the semi-finals of the World Championship League of Legends tournament in Toronto. Ontario sportsbooks target players in the province, meaning odds and lines will be available on the sports Canadians follow. Many international sportsbooks also provide the often-prohibited sports markets but may not pick betting lines that interest Canadian bettors.

• Competitive Odds & Prices

Many licensed Ontario sportsbooks also operate as international sportsbooks across the rest of Canada, so ON bettors will be getting the same odds as everyone else. PROLINE+ offers much better odds than state run sportsbooks in nearby provinces like Quebec’s Mise-O-Jeu.

Ontario has also welcomed several US sportsbooks with some of the most competitive odds globally. Any players using these sites can expect generous betting lines that would match up to those offered in states such as New York and Michigan.

• Gambling Revenue

One of the reasons why Bill C-218 was passed to legalize online sports betting was the potential benefits of gambling revenue through taxing operators. Every sportsbook site in Ontario is taxed 20%, and that revenue goes to the provincial government. Yet, government-led sportsbooks like PROLINE give even more profits to the Government of Ontario.

Other provinces have government-backed betting sites, like Mise-O-Jeu in Quebec, but most players choose to use international sportsbooks offering single-game wagers. All that taxable money is flooding out of Canada to wherever these sites are licensed.

It’s difficult to compare the Ontario market with other jurisdictions, as AGCO hasn’t released any official betting handles. However, iGaming Ontario (iGO) have published their own figures for the first quarter (April 4-June 30) of market operations across gaming as a whole – with more than $4bn in total wagers but just $162m in total gaming revenue from 492,000 active player accounts. This data does not include promotional wagers or recently regulated brands.

• Betting Taxes

There are no betting tax rules in Ontario except for professional gamblers or anyone who earns interest on their winnings, who must declare these winnings on a T5 form. The same policies also apply to government-backed sportsbooks across the rest of Canada, but anyone playing with an international sportsbook faces no tax regulations. This is fantastic compared to every US state, where bettors need to pay taxes to the IRS on gambling winnings, and include winnings when completing their state income tax.

Who Oversees Sports Betting in Ontario?

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission Ontario (AGCO) is the body responsible for licensing sportsbooks, and it established the regulations for the gambling market that launched on April 4, 2022. The organization is also charged with overseeing other regulatory bodies that ensure each upholds high safety standards.

This includes the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the agency responsible for responsible gambling measures, lottery betting, and operating the government-backed PROLINE sportsbook. This partnership allowed PROLINE+ to launch, which was the first site that accepted single-game bets in the province in December 2021 when external operators had to wait until April 2022.

iGaming Ontario also works with the AGCO to test online sportsbooks applying for licenses against standards set through a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA). iGaming Ontario also releases a lot of information for players to educate themselves, like the list of regulated operators.