As of October 17th, 2018, new legislation regarding gambling has come into effect. The legislation will affect how Canadians can gamble both online and offline. While there are benefits to the new laws, there are some drawbacks that consumers should be aware of. In this blog post, we will take a closer look at the new gambling legislation in Canada and discuss the pros and cons for consumers. Stay tuned for more updates on this topic!
History of Gambling in Canada
Many think that because gambling in Canada has been illegal or banned for quite some time, the country has never had experience with any sort of gambling game. This isn’t entirely true, as John Abbot was one of the very first people to discover tribes that were native to Canada in 1497 that enjoyed gambling.
It was only until 1892 that every single form of gambling was made illegal and hence prohibited under the Canadian Criminal Code. It was hot long, however, until a few games were made legal again in 1900, like raffles and bingo. The ability to bid on horse racing was made legal again. In terms of lotteries, these were legal until 1969, when lotteries became a way of fund-raising different projects.
Is Gambling Legal in Canada?
At this point, you might be wondering, well, “what is the new gambling legislation in Canada?”. This is a very interesting question considering gambling as a whole has been legal in Canada since 1985 with the introduction of hundreds of new casinos when laws and control over this area moved from state to federal jurisdiction. This means that it is up to each province to set a precedent and laws for gambling.
As per the new law, it is now completely legal for individuals to bet on single sporting events, which means that the sports betting industry within the country is now able to flourish. The way that this is being handled is that each province will be able to regulate sports betting in any way that they deem necessary or see fit. A lot of famous Canadians with large fellowships on platforms such as Facebook and Twitch are taking advantage of the legal status of online casinos in Canada and promoting various brands in online casino streams. These have resulted in large controversies in the past but
What Sports Can Be Gambled On?
With the now legal status regarding sports betting, many providers can operate and flourish. As many as 27 new sportsbooks are wanted to launch in Canada, at least Ontario.
Some sites include theScore, FanDuel, bet365, BetMGM, Unibet, 888 Sport, Rivalry, LeoVegas HelloCasino, Lottogo, DreamVegas, and more. Current experts are predicting that the Ontario sports betting industry should be able to match that of many within the US states due to the barrier of entry being much lower.
What Gambling Games are Popular?
In terms of the gambling games that are popular within Canada, it would be all of them since casinos on a large scale have been legal since 1985. If you have thought that this new law which has been passed has come quite randomly or suddenly, this is not the case at all, since Canada has a massive interest in gambling.
For example, current statistics show that 70% of Canadians participate in some form of gambling every single here. A study that was conducted in 2002 showed that 18.9 million Canadians have gambled, whether it be on many of the games of chance available in the country or on the lottery.
What Does This Mean for the Future of Gambling in Canada?
As mentioned above, many experts predict that the gambling industry within Canada will be able to compete with the gambling industry in America. The primary reason for this is that in the past, in terms of sports betting, parlay bets were the only legal way to bet. Players can now make single bets on individual sporting competitions.
This will not only bring even more people to the sports betting industry, but it will also expand the betting options, the types of sports that can be bet on, and more.
