Ontario’s five-year experiment with single-event sports betting has sharply expanded online gambling while increasing pressure on support services. A review published on August 27, 2026, found that active online gambling accounts in the province have tripled since private operators entered the market in April 2022.

Average monthly calls to ConnexOntario about problem gambling also more than tripled after the launch. Call volumes remained above pre-launch levels, according to the review.

Ontario’s regulated market has grown rapidly since 2022. The available evidence also points to sustained demand for gambling-related support.

Ontario records the sharpest growth

Ontario launched its regulated private-market model on April 4, 2022. Private operators can offer online casino games and sports betting through agreements with iGaming Ontario.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario regulates operators and suppliers. The model differs from provincial systems in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

iGaming Ontario reported more than 2.6 million active player accounts in the 2024-25 fiscal year. The figure does not represent unique people because one person can hold accounts with multiple operators.

A peer-reviewed analysis found that active player accounts per 100,000 Ontario residents aged 15 and older rose by 239.2 per cent between April 2022 and August 2025.

Monthly wagers increased from C$1.08 billion to C$8.1 billion during the same period. Wagers do not equal losses because winnings can be wagered again.

Support services face a heavier workload

ConnexOntario provides free, confidential, 24-hour information and referrals for mental health, addiction and problem-gambling concerns in Ontario.

The review found that average monthly gambling-related calls rose sharply after the private-market launch and did not return to earlier levels.

Global News reported that ConnexOntario recorded 92,780 total service interactions in 2019-20, compared with 155,391 in 2025-26.

The average interaction grew from just under eight minutes to almost 12 minutes. That increase may indicate that callers require more complex support, although the figures do not establish the reason for each longer interaction.

ConnexOntario’s executive director told Global News that demand had increased among young men aged 15 to 24 and people aged 35 to 45. The organization has also said government funding has not kept pace with its workload.

Risk behaviours are increasing across Canada

The review cited Statistics Canada data showing increases between 2018 and 2025 in behaviours such as borrowing money to gamble and betting more to recover losses.

Those findings apply beyond Ontario. Provinces differ in how they license, operate and advertise gambling, so the effects are not uniform across the country.

The federal Safe and Regulated Sports Betting Act received royal assent on June 29, 2021. It amended the Criminal Code to allow provincial governments, or entities licensed by provinces, to conduct and manage lotteries involving bets on single sporting events.

The law did not create one national gambling market or a single national licence. Provinces and territories retain responsibility for their own systems and player-protection measures.

  • Ontario permits a competitive private online market.
  • British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have expanded single-event betting through provincial gambling systems.
  • Other provinces and territories apply their own rules, products and player-protection measures.

Young adults face a separate warning

A November 2025 report from the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, Greo Evidence Insights and Mental Health Research Canada found that 32 per cent of Canadians aged 18 to 29 had gambled online.

Among young adults who had gambled online in the previous year, 23.5 per cent reported a high level of gambling-related harm.

The report associated those harms with reduced savings, increased credit-card debt and damage to personal wellbeing. It did not suggest that every online gambler experienced those outcomes.

Advertising becomes the next policy battle

Ontario’s experience has intensified debate over whether advertising rules match the reach and speed of online gambling.

A private member’s bill introduced in the Ontario legislature on April 20, 2026, proposes to prohibit advertising by electronic gaming sites. The bill would allow fines of up to C$1 million for corporations.

The bill had not received royal assent when it was introduced. Its status means the proposed restrictions were not yet law at that point.

The policy dispute now centres on whether provincial regulators can protect players while governments and operators benefit from market growth. Ontario’s figures show that access, wagering activity and demand for help have all increased since the private market opened.