As another year is coming to an end, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation has started its annual betting on the first baby of the new 2024. Gamblers from the province can now place their predictions where the first baby of 2024 will be born on BCLC’s PlayNow.com platform. They can also predict the most popular names for babies throughout the year.
BCLC is a state-run organization that offers responsible gambling and lottery products to the Province of B.C. It also runs PlayNow, which is the only regulated iGaming platform in the province and 100% of its proceeds are invested into the local economy. Proceeds from its gambling operations are also used to support local organizations, groups, and communities.
Odds are Now Out
With the end of 2023 being just a few days away, the Crown agency issued its odds for betting on the first baby of the new year. The current favourite is the BC Women’s Hospital with odds set at 3.5, the Royal Inland Hospital came with 28, and the Kelowna General Hospital had 18, hence a successful CA$10 bet from a bettor will turn into CA$35, CA$280, and CA$180 respectively.
Meanwhile, in terms of the most popular baby names for the whole of 2024, the frontrunners are Olivia for girls and Noah for boys. This comes as no surprise, as Olivia has been the most popular name for girls for seven of the last eight years in B.C. It only made its way to Emma in 2015. Liam was the most popular for boys for two years, but it was replaced by Noah in 2022.
It is quite common for the Crown corporation to offer a wide selection of novelty bets for its players to wager on, such as the first baby for the new year, the weather during Christmas and more. Players also have the option to bet on the Oscars, while others can be related to the Super Bowl and what colour of Gatorade will be splashed on the winning team’s coach.
For this year’s betting on the first baby in the province in 2024, the Crown corporation reminds that bettors can place their wagers on the birthplace from now until 6 a.m. on December 31, 2024. Meanwhile, baby names can be placed until January 31, 2024. BCLC reminds that the odds can change with time, and a full list can be found on its PlayNow.
British Columbians Win Big in 2023
As the end of the year draws near, BCLC recently recapped its lottery payouts throughout the year. For 2023 it paid out more than CA$859 million in lottery prizes from more than 101 million winning tickets sold at both retail locations and on its official iGaming platform. PlayNow. Confirming another successful year for its players and its activities.
In terms of winnings by regions, Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley saw their players cash out on CA$459.9 million in total prizes with 45.5 million in redeemed winning tickets. There were 34 grand prizes worth CA$500,000 or more. Meanwhile, the Northern B.C. region witnessed CA$59.5 million in total prizes from 9.4 million winning tickets and two prizes of CA$500k or more
Source: Tomas, Jesse “Time to place your bets on BC’s New Year’s baby” Info News.ca, December 28, 2023
