Ontario’s iGaming market has displaced the pre-existing unregulated market and made Ontario a recognized leader internationally in this industry since its launch in April 2022.
Ontario regulators said the province’s iGaming market drew about CAD $35.6 billion (USD $26.4 billion) in wagers and CAD $1.4 billion (USD $1 billion) in gross gaming revenue during its first year of operation, making the province one of the top five jurisdictions in North America by both metrics.
Since Ontario’s market for online poker, casino games, and sports betting opened on April 4, 2022, more than 1.6 million active player accounts have been created across more than 40 operator sites, according to iGaming Ontario (iGO). The number of operators has made the province “the most competitive market in continental North America,” iGO said.
“Ontario’s iGaming market has displaced the pre-existing unregulated market and made Ontario a recognized leader internationally in this industry since its launch in April 2022,” said Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey. “We are truly proud of this strong, responsible, competitive online gaming model.”
Said iGO Board Chair Dave Forestell: “Today’s numbers demonstrate that Ontario has one of the best online gaming markets in the world. Since Ontario opened the market, we have seen new investments, job creation, and captured revenue that used to leave the province. Ontario is well on its way to becoming the best gaming jurisdiction in the world.”
Every player who places a wager with a legal operator is doing so in a safe, regulated, and protected environment.
iGO Executive Director Martha Otton added, “Every player who places a wager with a legal operator is doing so in a safe, regulated, and protected environment.”
According to the regulator, the average monthly spend per active player was about $70 during the market’s first year in operation.
iGO reported that the most popular sport for Ontarians to bet on was basketball, which accounted for 28% of wagers during the first year. Soccer was a distant second with 15% of wagers, followed by football (14%), hockey (9%), and baseball (8%).
The regulator also said it found that nearly half (48%) of wagers placed at an online casino in Ontario were on slots, while nearly one-third (32%) were on table games with a live dealer. The remaining 19% of wagers were made on computer-based table games.
The market Has Been Growing Steadily
Data from iGO shows Ontario’s market has been growing steadily.
The market saw CAD $4.1 billion in wagers (then USD $3.1 billion) and CAD $162 million (then USD $123.4 million) in gross gaming revenue during its first three months in operation, for the period ending June 30, 2022. That was actually better than how New Jersey and Pennsylvania fared in their opening three months.
Ontarians wagered CAD $6 billion in Q3 2022, helping push revenue up to CAD $267 million for the quarter. But revenue slowed compared to the second three months that markets were live in Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
By Q4 2022, wagers had topped CAD $11.5 billion (then USD $8.7 billion) while revenue surged to CAD $457 million (then USD $342.9 million). Although iGO didn’t release figures for Q1 2023, the regulator did provide data for the first full year of operations.
After subtracting wager and revenue figures for the preceding three quarters of 2022 from the full-year total, it appears that Ontarians wagered nearly CAD $14 billion (USD $10.4 billion) in Q1 2023. Revenue hit CAD $517 million (USD $383.8 million) in Q1 2023.
Less than half of the operators serving Ontario today entered the market during its first three months in operation. Eighteen operators were live in Q2 2022 compared to 24 in Q3 2022, 36 in Q4 2022, and more than 40 today.
The number of active player accounts has also been rising. There were 492,000 accounts during the first three months the market was open, but that increased to 628,000 in Q3 2022 and 910,000 in Q4 2022.
