Andrew Ortenberg
Legal sports betting has been spreading across the United States ever since PAPSA was struck down by the Supreme Court, and now our neighbors north of the border are starting to follow our lead. Canada has legalized single-game sports betting, starting today August 27th. It’s an exciting development, and it looks like Canadian bettors will be able to hit the ground running.
Canada sports betting – how it will happen
While sports betting is becoming fully legal this week, it’s not brand new to Canada. Some specialty wagers like parlays have been available through the country’s lottery system. Those lottery operators will now be ready to roll right away, and are already expanding their offerings.
The British Columbia Lottery Corp has launched the website PlayNow.com to offer single-game wagering. Just like in the United States, not every part of the country will have legalized betting right away.
Each province will have the option to allow sports betting at their own discretion. Alberta has already announced plans to open things up this fall, while Ontario is also working on a plan to begin taking bets late this year.
Saskatchewan has announced that the Indian Gaming Authority will have online sports betting rights in their territory. Other provinces have announced no such plans, and could take a while to legalize sports betting. Just like we’ve seen with some states here in America. Now, let’s take a look at some of the operators planning to expand into the new market:
Sportsbook options
Bettors will be flocking, and so too will be the operators looking to service them. PointsBet is starting to flesh out PointsBet Canada, for starters. Betway Canada is another one of the top options, as is Bet365. theScore bet is also going to be rapidly expanding, and their base in Canada was a large part of the reason they were recently acquired by Penn Gaming/Barstool Sports.
FanDuel and DraftKings are currently running DFS games in Canada, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them expand into single-game sports betting soon there as well. If you’re a Canadian bettor looking to make the most-informed wagers possible, Pickswise is the place for you.
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