THE ROAD TO SINGLE EVENT BETTING
Te Canadian Criminal Code sets out the parameters of legal gaming in Canada. While the Criminal Code does not prohibit sports based wagering activity, it has until very recently prohibited wagering on the outcome of a single sporting event. Companies licensed by Canadian provinces have only been permitted to offer parlay-style sports bets - wagers that include more than one match. Now that single sports betting is on the way lotteries will be allowed to increase their products to Canadian consumers and vastly increase the array of products on offer.
While parlay bets can attract recreational gamblers by offering higher payouts, they are harder to win than single-game wagers. In addition in the past players also receive a lower return than they would get from betting with an offshore bookmaker. Te Canadian Gaming Association estimates $4 billion (CDN) is gambled via off-shore sites with $10 billion (CDN) overall, including illegal bookmaking.
Te end to the restriction ends a long effort to overturn the bill with similar attempts going back as far as 2011. In February 2016 New Democratic Party MP Brian Masse introduced Bill C-221 to authorise single event sports betting across Canada. Previously introduced as C-290 the previous year the bill sought to repeal legislation that prohibited wagering and gave the provincial governments the right to conduct and manage the activity. In September 2016 legislators in the
operators such as the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) said that it would work with industry, regulator and government partners to introduce licensed sportsbooks in key markets.
“Our players have wanted single-event sports betting for a long time,’ said Stewart Groumoutis, BCLC’s director of eGaming. “We’re encouraging the federal government to modernise laws so we can provide single-event betting to our players and generate additional revenue to support provincial programs.”
Bill C-218 passed its third reading in the House of Commons in April 2021. It then went to the Senate for approval. However, unlike previous bills, it provided protection for the horse racing industry as it gave Te Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency (CPMA’s) exclusive jurisdiction to continue to regulate and supervise pari-mutuel betting on horse racing. Te upper chamber approved the bill in June by a vote of 57-20.
Its passage came as a surprise to many as private member bills rarely pass in Canada. Even before the bill went up for approval in the Senate, Waugh said that it would be a close run thing. “Is it going to come out? Who knows, especially a backbencher's PMB [private member's bill] and a Conservative at that,” he said. Te stakes were high. If it didn’t get through and wasn’t approved before both the Senate and House left for the summer recess, it could have resulted in the end of the bill amongst speculation that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would call a snap election. Trudeau
“Our players have wanted single-event sports betting for a long time. We’re encouraging the federal government to modernise laws so we can provide single-event betting to our players and generate additional revenue to support provincial programs.” Stewart Groumoutis, BCLC’s director of eGaming.
House of Commons voted 156 to 133 to reject it.
Undeterred in February 2020 Masse co-sponsored a new sports betting bill “Te Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act” (C-218), with Conservative MP Kevin Waugh to federally authorise single-event sports betting. Te bill was supported by a number of lawmakers across Canada, had cross party consensus and was backed by both Canadian and North American professional sports leagues with a lot of support coming due to the fast roll out of sports betting in the US. Te bill’s backers also included the CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee who said that the bill “had the potential to unlock new growth opportunities, reduce illegal betting and generate revenues for both the sport industry and governments.” In addition it would help mitigate the economic impact of the pandemic.
Provinces had also backed the modernisation of federal gambling laws for years. Canadian lottery
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as it turned out did just that. But by then the bill permitting single-event wagers had already received Royal Assent.
Tings moved quickly after that. Justice Minister David Lametti proclaimed August 27 as the in force date for Bill C-218. Ontario MP Chris Bittle welcomed the move saying that lawmakers had removed “a relic in the Criminal Code.” Now that it was gone the government could now “regulate, control it and take the money out of the hands of organised crime,” he said.
Provincial governments had been gearing up for a long time to allow for an expansion of their sports betting offer. As a result the roll out is expected to be fast. In August. Sporting Solutions and FDJ Gaming Solutions, both owned by FDJ group, launched PROLINE+ Ontario’s only regulated online sports betting website. Te sportsbook allows players to wager on a wide range of American leagues, including the NFL, NHL, MLB,
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