Ontario’s Surging iGaming Market: 2023 Q1 Report

iGaming Ontario showcased its Q1 2023 market report, highlighting that online casinos have significantly outperformed expectations. The report reveals an astonishing dominance, with online casinos contributing to 83% of the total activity in Ontario. In contrast, more than 70% of new market revenues stemmed from online casino gaming rather than sports betting.

Betting Beyond Projections

Although earlier forecasts for the province in 2022 were optimistic regarding gaming and sports betting activities, the actual numbers have overshot projections. It’s evident that Canadians are inclined to bet through online casino games, sports wagers, or poker, with Ontario registering billions in bets every month. The real highlight? The overwhelming dominance of online casinos over sports betting.

Navigating the 2023-24 Fiscal Year

To clarify common misconceptions, the first quarter refers to the span from April 1 to June 30, 2023. An intriguing observation was basketball overshadowing hockey in sportsbook wagers. However, the overwhelming story remains the dominance of online casinos: they saw more than $11 billion in wagers, while sportsbooks attracted just $2 billion. The revenue generated also told a similar tale, with casinos raking in $392 million compared to sports betting’s $182 million.

Snapshot: Current Casino Market

Currently, 71 gambling platforms are active in Ontario, showing a decline from the 76 operational at the end of 2022. While the number of active accounts has decreased to 920,000, this doesn’t directly translate to a similar dip in individual players due to the trend of multiple accounts per player. On average, a player in Ontario spent around $197 in Q1 2023.

Growth Trends: Past vs. Future

A comparison between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Q1 reports offers fascinating insights. Casino games, including slots, computer-based and live table games, and even peer-to-peer bingo, previously covered nearly 80% ($28 billion) of the total wagers. This translated to revenue of $940 million from that segment alone.

However, sports betting isn’t to be overshadowed entirely. While it recorded $7 billion in wagers during the 2022-23 fiscal year, the Q1 2023 numbers hint at potential growth for the current fiscal year. Yet, when it comes to peer-to-peer poker, the numbers are less significant. It contributed only 3% of the total bets in the 2022-23 fiscal year, making up just $40 million of the total gaming revenue.

Ontario’s iGaming landscape is bustling with activity, primarily led by the casino industry. With these numbers in hand, stakeholders can strategize accordingly for the coming months.