Ontario’s gaming regulator has fined theScore and BetMGM Canada a combined CA$215,000 over separate compliance failures involving player-risk monitoring and cash offers used to attract new customers.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, or AGCO, fined theScore CA$105,000 over alleged failures to respond to a player’s high-risk gambling. It separately fined BetMGM Canada CA$110,000 after marketing companies offered cash to people who opened new accounts.

The orders were issued on October 7, 2025, and March 26, 2025. A regulatory report published on September 2, 2026, brought the cases back into focus as Ontario’s regulated online market continues to expand.

What the theScore case involved

The AGCO said a theScore patron wagered about CA$2.5 million and lost approximately CA$230,000 over eight months. About CA$100,000 was lost during the first month, according to the regulator’s findings.

The regulator said the account showed frequent, high-value play and escalating losses that indicated possible gambling-related harm. It found that the operator did not take sufficient action to identify the risk, intervene and document its response.

The case does not establish that the player had a gambling disorder. It concerns the operator’s duty to respond when account data indicates a possible risk of harm.

Ontario’s monitoring rules go beyond losses

AGCO guidance requires registered internet gaming operators to assess players using multiple sources of information. The objective is to identify risk early, rather than wait for a fixed spending threshold to be reached.

  • Spending indicators: amounts wagered and lost.
  • Time indicators: long sessions, late-night play and changes in session patterns.
  • Account indicators: failed deposits, cancelled withdrawals and multiple payment methods.
  • Behaviour indicators: chasing losses, erratic betting and use of higher-risk products.
  • Customer-service indicators: expressions of financial or emotional distress.
  • Player-protection indicators: repeated play breaks, changes to limits and previous self-exclusion.

The AGCO expects operators to use automated and manual tools, act promptly when risk emerges and assess whether an intervention changes the player’s behaviour. Possible responses include direct contact, limits, breaks, account suspension or closure.

Operators must match their intervention to the level of risk and review whether it worked.

Why the BetMGM penalty extends to affiliates

The BetMGM case involved two marketing affiliates. One offered cash in a public forum, generating 377 sign-ups and about CA$127,180 in commissions. A second generated 94 sign-ups and approximately CA$34,000 in commissions through cash offers and on-site account activations, according to the AGCO.

Ontario’s rules hold operators responsible for third parties hired to support their gaming business. The enforcement action shows that outsourcing customer acquisition to an affiliate or marketing agency does not remove that responsibility.

The penalty also reinforces Ontario’s restrictions on public inducement advertising. Cash, bonuses and credits cannot be promoted to the public through channels outside the province’s permitted marketing framework.

What the cases mean for Ontario players

The two cases involve different points in the customer relationship. One concerns how an operator responds after gambling activity begins. The other concerns how a customer is recruited to open an account.

Operators must control both areas:

  • They must detect warning signs after an account becomes active.
  • They must ensure marketing partners do not use prohibited cash offers to acquire accounts.
  • They must keep records showing what they detected, what they did and whether the response reduced risk.

The practical test is not whether written policies exist. It is whether those policies operate when spending, time, payment activity or customer communications indicate possible harm. It also applies to whether outside marketers follow the same rules as the licensed operator.

A compliance test for a growing market

Ontario’s competitive online gaming market has added operators, brands and marketing channels since its April 2022 launch. That expansion has increased the number of accounts and commercial relationships that operators must monitor.

The penalties show that responsible gambling controls and marketing oversight are operational duties, not policy statements alone. Operators must be able to demonstrate how they identify risk, respond to it and supervise the companies acting on their behalf.

Operators served with an AGCO monetary penalty can request a hearing before Ontario’s Licence Appeal Tribunal within the applicable deadline. The orders remain part of the regulator’s enforcement record unless overturned or otherwise changed through the appeal process.