Ontario Gambling Regulator Warns Media to Block Illegal Adverts

Ontario’s gambling regulator, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), has warned media outlets in the province to stop carrying advertising for unlicensed operators. 

AGCO has written to over a dozen traditional and online media platforms, reminding them of the rules on gambling operators in the province. According to the Gaming Control Act of 1992, any online gambling site has to register with AGCO. The AGCO oversees the legal Ontario sports betting and Ontario online casino markets.

Operators must also sign up with iGaming Ontario in order to legitimately offer gambling products, but overseas platforms such as Bodog, cited by the AGCO, do not fulfill these requirements. 

The iGaming Ontario framework also requires operators to adhere to strict rules on money laundering, data protection, game fairness, and gaming integrity. Since overseas sites don’t sign up to these rules, the AGCO argues that their operation puts Ontario players at risk. These are the rules that the best Ontario sports betting apps adhere to.

Ontario regulator aims for Bodog block

The sports betting site Bodog, which Il Nido Inc. operates, has been actively targeting Ontarian players through advertising on several channels. The company has blocked people living in the Nova Scotia sports betting and Quebec sports betting markets from accessing its site, but hasn’t taken action to block Ontario.

"By refusing to carry advertising from unregulated and high-risk operators like Bodog, media organizations can exemplify social responsibility and play an important role in protecting Ontarians and supporting Ontario’s regulated market,” commented the AGCO Chief Executive Officer and Registrar, Dr Karin Schnarr. 

The regulated gambling sector in Ontario is the first in Canada to be opened to private companies, and it has grown dramatically since its launch in 2022. 

Figures released at the end of March showed that in the 2024/25 year, a total of CA$82.74 billion was wagered on the regulated sports betting market in Ontario, generating CA$3.2 billion in revenue. This is an increase of 33% from the figure for 2023/24, which means the sector has grown in each of its three years of existence. There are now over 80 regulated sports betting and iGaming sites in the province. 

Offshore operators still target regulated markets

The success of the regulated market, however, has not stopped overseas companies from being able to attract Ontario customers. A report from the AGCO earlier this month showed that around 20% of those who wagered through regulated sites also bet on unlicensed platforms. 

Last year, Canada’s financial intelligence service FINTRAC reported that illicit cash was being laundered through betting sites, often located overseas in jurisdictions with weak regulation.