Canada’s women’s soccer team kicked off its Women’s World Cup campaign with a goalless draw with Nigeria, Ontarian bettors still fancy the team’s chances to win the tournament. According to theScore Bet, one of the province’s legal sportsbooks, as of Monday afternoon, over half of Ontario’s bettors backed the team to go all the way and win the championship.
The next game of the team is scheduled for Wednesday at 8 a.m. ET as the Canadians face Ireland. It should be said that the expectations around the team are high, as the team is the defending Olympic women’s soccer champion. The team won gold at the 2020 Games in Tokyo after consecutive bronze medals in 2012 at London and 2016 in Rio.
Ontarians Demonstrate their Support
Aubrey Levy, Senior Vice President of Content and Marketing, theScore recently shared that attention and awareness of the Canadian women’s team spiked on the back of the Olympic win. She said that momentum and the drawing of attention are generating compelling hometown activity. She noted that the Nigeria draw was a surprise, but believes that it won’t change people’s expectations.
According to the latest odds, Canada is currently 50-1 to win the World Cup, which is a long shot. The country is behind the United States with 9/4 which is the favourite for the trophy, England with 6-1, the host Australia with 12-1, France with 18-1, and the Netherlands with 20-1. However, Ontarian bettors fancy the team’s chances and are quite supportive of the team.
The Senior VP noted that the hometown love for the team is real, and according to him, it further supports, when people rally and come out to bet their hearts on the tournament, just as they did in the Men’s World Cup in December 2022. Currently, the Canadian team is the crowd’s favourite to win against Ireland with odds of minus-155.
With these odds, a successful wager of CA$155 on the team to win would result in a net win of CA$100. Also, the clash between the two teams is plus-240 to result in a draw, and an Irish win would be a plus-425. A successful bet of CA$100 on a draw or a win for Ireland would bring CA$240 for a tie and CA$425 for the underdog’s win.
Focusing on Ontario Expansion
It should be mentioned that in October 2021, theScore Bet was acquired by Penn National Gaming and shortly after that, the operator announced that it will be suspending its U.S. activities. The company had trouble adjusting to the local markets, and its idea is to focus its attention and effort on other regulated jurisdictions, such as its home turf Ontario.
After becoming part of the province’s legal market for digital gambling and sports betting, theScore inked a partnership with MLB’s Toronto Blue Jays. The agreement was the team’s first-ever gaming-related collaboration and it will run for the next 10 years. Via the deal, the operator was allowed to launch a premium sports bar and restaurant at Rogers Centre and much more.
Source: Ralph, Dan “Ontario sports bettors supporting Canadian women’s soccer team” Global News, July 25, 2023
