After Ontario became the first Canadian province to open its doors to online gambling companies, sports betting ads came to crowd social media feeds and were soon plastered on billboards, buses and trains.The Globe and Mail
Last week, the Ontario government won a court case allowing online gamblers in the province to bet in games with players outside of Canada. As a result, Ontario poker players will be able to participate in high-stakes international games, boosting revenues for private gaming companies operating in the province.
The case, which Ontario asked the court of appeal to rule on, raises serious questions about the government’s enthusiastic push to expand online gambling, particularly as research shows it is more harmful than other types of gambling, and its growth is causing devastating harm, particularly amongst young men.
In 2021, after pressure from online gambling companies who hired lobbyists with ties to Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government, the province established iGaming Ontario, eliminating Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s monopoly on internet gambling. Within a year, 46 different operators had offered over 70 different online gambling sites. In April, iGaming boasted about its “truly dynamic igaming market,” which brought in $82.7-billion in wagers in 2024-25, a 32-per-cent rise from the previous year.
The Ontario government benefits directly – iGaming receives 20 per cent of gross gaming revenues (revenues minus payouts to players). As the accompanying chart shows, Ontario projects it will receive $253-million from iGaming over the next year, a steep rise from the $87-million it got three years ago. Alberta’s government has been inspired, and plans to follow Ontario’s lead.
The enthusiasm ignores clear evidence of serious problems stemming from online gambling. A new report from the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction shows that one in three young adults gambles online. Of that group of 18-to-29 year olds, 23.5 per cent reported high levels of gambling-related harms, including the loss of savings, increased credit card debt, and feelings of regret and failure. Online gambling is more harmful than gambling at physical locations, as people gamble more frequently and spend more money.
Gambling companies use sports betting to attract customers to their websites, where they can be funnelled into more lucrative online casino games. Online gambling also harms professional sports, as athletes can be tempted to alter their activities – two Major League Baseball pitchers were recently accused of taking bribes to rig pitches they threw at games.
Ontario has some restrictions on gambling ads, but that hasn’t prevented online gambling promotions from flooding the airwaves. One study found that gambling messages, including commercials, betting company logos and sponsored segments, filled up 21 per cent of the broadcast time of selected NHL and NBA games.
A bill on sports betting, which passed the Senate and is currently before the House, aims to create a national framework to regulate sports gambling advertising. Passing this bill would be a welcome step.
Gambling industry advocates argue that without a regulated industry, customers end up in the black market, where governments get no tax revenue and there are no safeguards for problem gambling. However, some researchers say industry figures stating that billions are being spent on black-market bookies or grey-market offshore websites are overstated. Anti-gambling activists also argue that legal betting companies do little to prevent gamblers from spiralling into addiction.
The reality is that Ontario’s expansion of the legal market has fuelled intense competition, advertising and promotions, resulting in increased gambling and social harm. It’s irresponsible for Ontario to continue to boost the industry.
A government’s job is to protect citizens from harm. Instead Ontario is allowing businesses to profit by harming the most vulnerable – and the government itself is profiting too.