Alberta is earmarking $1 million for a review of its gambling rules, a potential step toward an Ontario-like system of online sports betting and internet casino gaming that operators hope will eventually emerge in the Western Canadian province.
Indeed, the Alberta government released its 2024 budget on Thursday, and the $73.2-billion spending plan includes additional detail about what the province intends to do about iGaming.
Alberta is weighing the idea of a competitive market for online gambling along the lines of what was introduced two years ago in Ontario, the only jurisdiction in Canada where the likes of bet365, DraftKings, and FanDuel can legally offer sports betting and iGaming.
Thursday’s budget may help make such a system possible in Alberta. That, however, could depend on the outcome of a $1-million legislative and regulatory review promised by the province's fiscal plan for the year that will end March 31, 2025.
The budget says “$1 million in 2024-25 will support a review of the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act and supporting Regulation, with the objectives of reducing the regulatory burden on business and finding ways to increase contributions to Alberta charities and community facilities.”
That legislation allows the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission (AGLC) to "conduct and manage" gambling on behalf of the provincial government, including the province's only regulated iGaming site, Play Alberta.
Moreover, the document outlining the Ministry of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction's business plan for 2024-27 says it is "further committed to developing and implementing Alberta’s online gaming strategy, with a focus on responsible gaming and provincial and Indigenous revenue generation."
Alberta's 2024-25 budget earmarks $1M for a review of the province's Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act, as well as related regulations.
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) February 29, 2024
Operators are hoping Alberta will ultimately adopt an Ontario-like system for online sports betting and iGaming out west, and this could help. pic.twitter.com/JtURotkV8y
One of the key objectives for the ministry is to "[i]ncrease provincial revenue generation and contributions from AGLC-regulated industries to Alberta charities and community facilities through a review of the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act and supporting Regulation."
Another objective is to “[w]ork with Indigenous partners and stakeholders to advance the development of an online gaming strategy for Alberta.”
Keeping the dream alive
The mentions of online gambling and the $1 million pledged for a gambling-related review are small parts of the Alberta budget. They also do not guarantee any radical shift to legal sports betting in Alberta, the status quo for which is government-owned lottery and gaming entities.
But Thursday’s budget does crack open the door a little further for reform and keep the discussion about iGaming alive in the Alberta legislature. That discussion has already been happening, but it has gathered momentum over the past year.
Premier Danielle Smith's July 2023 mandate letter to Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Dale Nally said he was expected to work with Indigenous partners to “finish developing and implementing Alberta's online gaming strategy with a focus on responsible gaming and provincial and Indigenous revenue generation.”
Sportsbook operators have also been lobbying the government for gambling reforms. Nally then made the rounds recently in London, including a stop at the ICE gambling conference alongside Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey and Canadian Gaming Association CEO Paul Burns. Gaming News Canada reported hearing that Nally met with “five or six” operators during his time at the conference overseas.
TAM you believe it?
Permitting private-sector operators of online sportsbooks and casino sites could deliver the revenue Alberta mentioned in its budget. Ontario is realizing tens of millions of dollars in additional revenue from iGaming every month with its competitive market, the only one of its kind in Canada.
If Alberta implements an Ontario-like system for sports betting and online casino gambling, it could also mean a material new market for bookmakers. There is still just one source of legal online gambling in Alberta, the government-owned and AGLC-operated Play Alberta, but the province is the fourth-most populous jurisdiction in Canada, similar in size to Kentucky. The possibility of another market with both online sports betting and casino play would be welcomed by the gaming industry.
PointsBet has circled Alberta as a likely spot for further expansion of regulated iGaming in Canada. The Australia-based bookmaker hopes to add the province to its total addressable market (TAM) and has been lobbying government officials for "a level playing field" in the province for sports betting.
“Alberta, British Columbia seem to be probably at the head of the list to legalize in the next couple of years and provide a natural expansion to that TAM,” PointsBet CEO Sam Swanell said this week during a call for analysts and investors.
