Canadian single-event betting bill clears final hurdle

Canadian legislators have voted to approve legislation which allows single-event sports betting in the Great White North for the first time.

Bill C-218 was passed by a vote of 57 to 20 by the Canadian senate, paving the way for the bill to be given royal assent, at which point it will become law.

The bill had initially passed successfully in the House of Commons of Canada in February.

The legislation decriminalises single-event sports betting (SEB), giving provincial governments the power to legislate full-blown wagering in their jurisdictions.

Pari-mutuel horseracing betting, which is already legal in Canada, has been left out of the bill and will continue to be regulated by the Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency (CPMA).

The UPDATE you’ve been waiting for: Bill #C218 has officially passed in the Senate & will become law in the coming days. I’m honoured to have worked to make single-event sports betting legal in Canada. #cdnpoli #nlpoli @KevinWaugh_CPC @SenateCA

— Senator David Wells (@wellsdavid) June 22, 2021

Its passage ends a decade-long journey for SEB legislation in Canada, which had seemingly floundered in 2015 when a similar bill authored by Conservative MP Kevin Waugh, having successfully passed through the house, ultimately was derailed due to parliamentary elections.

A second attempt at legalisation by the New Democrat and Conservative parties failed to win parliamentary support from Canada’s then ruling Liberal Party in 2016.

However, the Liberal Party presented its own bill in November, legislation which was later dropped in favour of an amended version of Waugh’s earlier bill, incorporating protections for the horseracing industry, which received approval from all of Canada’s four main parties.

“This is a major milestone and achievement for the Canadian gaming industry,” said Paul Burns, president and CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association (CGA).

“The CGA has been working to legalise single-event sports betting for more than 10 years and Bill C-218 benefited from a groundswell of broad stakeholder support from across Canada.

“The need for regulation, oversight, player protection and the creation of economic benefits for Canada was understood by everyone involved in the legislative process, which is why the bill was successfully passed,” Burns added.

A last-minute attempt to amend the legislation had received support from 20 senators but was ultimately overruled. The changes would have sent the bill back to the House of Commons for further review, potentially derailing its passage due to the mandatory parliamentary summer recess.

Canada’s provinces, including British Columbia and Ontario, are already understood to be readying regulated operations, with Ontario targeting the first SEB regulations in the autumn, ahead of a potential launch by the end of the year.

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) has said it will look to offer SEB immediately after the bill receives royal assent.

“This is a huge win for PlayNow.com players, and British Columbians overall,” said Lynda Cavanaugh, BCLC’s interim president and CEO.

“We’re excited to soon provide our players [with] these new offerings on PlayNow.com, which is B.C.’s only legal gambling website and delivers important revenue back to the Province of B.C. to support things like healthcare, education and community programmes,” Cavanaugh added.

Sports betting supplier Kambi welcomed passage of the bill with SVP marketing & communications Gerard Starkey admitting he was “excited” about the prospect of being able to offer SEB for the first time in Canada.

“As a member of the Canadian Gaming Association, we look forward to working with our operator partners to deliver a fully compliant, high quality pre-game and in-play betting experience to Canadian players on a province-by-province basis,” Starkey added.

PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken on the legalization of single-game sports betting in Canada?? pic.twitter.com/LZWIUqViIo

— PointsBet Sportsbook (@PointsBetUSA) June 22, 2021

John Levy, president and CEO of Toronto-based bookmaker and scores update service theScore, welcomed passage of the legislation, adding: “The forthcoming legalisation of single-event sports betting presents a substantial growth opportunity for our integrated media and betting business.

“We have been actively preparing for the expansion of online sports betting and igaming in our home province of Ontario, which is expected to commence later this year, and we are very favourably positioned to succeed given our mobile betting experience and vast active userbase,” Levy added.

The firm has suggested a potential market for online gambling in Canada of between $4.3bn and $5.4bn in GGR annually.

Entain, LeoVegas, Gamesys and DraftKings are among other operators expected to expand their offerings in Canada following passage of the bill.