Ontario retail sportsbooks are still far from reality, however, there has been a major development on the matter. On Thursday, leading sports betting brand Kambi Group announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with Great Canadian Entertainment, through which it will supply 10 of the latterās land-based casinos in the province with its retail sportsbook solutions.
Formerly known as Great Canadian Gaming Corporation, Great Canadian Entertainment operates 25 gaming, entertainment, and hospitality destinations in Canada. However, it remains to be confirmed which 10 of its properties in Ontario will include retail sports betting. Currently, the only one confirmed is its newest Pickering Casino Resort.
Retail Sportsbooks Coming to 10 Casinos
CEO of the gaming conglomerate, Tony Rodio, commented that the introduction of retail sports betting at 10 of their Ontario-located casinos is an important step forward for the company. As the first firm to offer such a product to the province, the company is happy to collaborate with Kambi Group and thanked the OLG, AGCO, and the local government for their support.
The OLG, the Ontario provincial government, and industry stakeholders are currently working on getting the necessary approval and creating the legal structure to launch retail sports betting in the province. Meanwhile, the only retail sports wagering in the region is offered by the Crown agencyās PROLINE locations which are available at approximately 10,000 retail properties in Ontario.
As of now, there is no concrete timeline for when retail sportsbooks will launch across Ontario. Initially, there were rumours about launching in September, however, this is out of the question. And besides Pickering Casino Resort, there are no other confirmed GCE locations. Some frontrunners include Casino Woodbine in Etobicoke, Casino Ajax, Great Blue Heron Casino in Port Perry, and Elements Casino Mohawk in Milton.
A while back, the President of the Canadian Gaming Association, Paul Burns told that industry leaders are working hard on the matter. He said that to his understanding there was progress and there were already some agreements between the OLG and casino operators. He is hopeful that retail sportsbooks will arrive soon as every operator wants to have one at their casinos.
Partnering with MGE
In September, Kambi Group also struck a partnership agreement with Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, which is the company that operates Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Through the deal, Kambi will supply MGE with a total of 36 sports betting kiosks for the two casinos, and transform Casino Niagaraās sports bar into a sportsbook.
Meanwhile, MGEās Fallsview Casino Resort brand is also available online under PlayFallsview. The company was allowed by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to enter the legal iGaming market and offers its online brand to local customers. PlayFallsview is already up and running and is available to play in the province.
