The great potential of the Canadian gambling market

Today, the gambling industry in the country is worth over $12 billion, with market experts expecting it to hit over $50 billion in the next decade.

Last year (2021), the Canadian government gave the gambling industry a huge boost through the famous C-218 bill which legalized betting on single sports events. The amendment is set to welcome millions of new punters in the gambling industry, with sites like Maple Casino Online set to direct gambling enthusiasts to reputable betting sites where they can safely get value for their money while having fun.  

With the new betting law put in place, the Canadian gambling industry is showing great potential in 2022, as explained in this article. But first, let’s look at the current gambling market in the country.

The current gambling market in Canada

Currently, the Canadian gambling market is governed by provincial authorities instead of federal laws. However, there are lots of restrictions and outright bans on different gambling activities in the country. Fortunately, the situation has been changing in the last few years since British Columbia proposed their new Gambling Control Act setting a legal age limit for punters. The new act also limits the betting amount that each player can make.

After the introduction of the new gaming act by British Columbia, Ontario wasn’t far behind. Their regulating authority soon introduced a similar registration, with bigger bet amounts and stricter age limits. Unfortunately, gambling activities in Canada remain illegal in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, and Prince Edward Island provinces.

The impact of the new C-218 Bill

In 2021, the Canadian federal government adopted the New C-218 that changes the laws regarding online sports betting regulated by provinces. The new law also changes other types of legal gambling activities in the country.

The C-218 bill makes it legal for provincial governments or entities licensed by the province’s Lieutenant governor to manage lottery schemes involving race betting, single sports events, fights, and athletic contests. That means that any entity can apply for a betting license in their respective province and start offering their users gambling and sports betting offers.

The only sports betting service that the Canadian government isn’t allowing is the one focusing on horse racing events. However, that’s just a speck in the overall Canadian gambling market, so it doesn’t have a significant influence on the overall market potential. As such, the C-218 bill preconditions the country’s gambling market to grow dramatically.

Canada is now a lucrative market for casino operators

The new Canadian gambling law will affect the whole betting industry and every company that offers various services linked to online casinos and sports betting. That matters as it gives casino operators access to new markets that were previously closed legally.

At this point, it’s hard to estimate the potential growth of Canada’s gambling market, but we can expect the new law to give a significant boost to gambling providers in the country. The move to allow provinces to legalize sports betting and online casino games create a new market opportunity for this type of entertainment. That means that online casinos will become more prevalent in Canada in the coming years.

The Canadian gambling market seems under-served

Although online gambling in Canada wasn’t illegal before the new C-218 bill, the industry wasn’t quite big. International offshore casino operators were the main reason behind that, as they allowed Canadian citizens to gamble all day long without any limits.

Canada’s government has long been aware of the issue, which explains why they introduced the new law allowing them to offer players local access to sports betting and online casino games. However, it’s not certain whether the new legislation will affect efforts from international companies and whether they’ll continue their business in Quebec, Ontario, and British Columbia without any changes.

Regardless of the outcome, it’s clear that Canada’s gambling market has remained under-served for decades. As such, the new law gives the country's gambling industry the chance to become bigger and more profitable in the coming years.

Some betting companies might be reluctant to offer their services online, mainly because they want to see the moves that provincial authorities will make. However, they should not be worried about anything as Canada isn’t the first country to legalize gambling activities. Nonetheless, gambling operators in the country shouldn’t miss the opportunity as it can create millions of gambling fanatics overnight.

The future of Canada’s gambling market

While the decision to legalize sports betting and online casinos in the country is a bold move, Canada’s gambling market is poised to become more profitable in the coming years. The country’s authority noted that the market wasn’t being used correctly because of various restrictions, so they made the move to fix the issue once and for all. That means that recreational gamblers will have access to a wide variety of betting options.

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