The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) officially launched its highly-anticipated regulated market for single-game sports betting and iGaming today, leading to a blizzard of operator announcements.
FanDuel Group, Rush Street Interactive, Genius Sports, Bragg Gaming Group and Penn National Gaming all hailed the fact they are joining the modern Canadian gold rush.
FanDuel Group said it launched a fully integrated real money online gaming experience for residents and visitors to the province of Ontario with the FanDuel Sportsbook app and the FanDuel Casino app.
FanDuel said its Player Account Management System in Ontario is powered by GAN, adding GAN’s account and wallet technology connects FanDuel’s sportsbook and casino, so customers can use sportsbook and casino winnings interchangeably.
The FanDuel Casino will make its debut on iOS, Android and desktop. Players will have access to 250 games across live dealers, live game shows, slots and table games such as blackjack and roulette. The casino experience will be powered by game providers including Everi Holdings, Evolution, High 5 Games, IGT PlayDigital, and PlayAGS.
Following launch, FanDuel said it has plans to actively expand its game portfolio across all casino verticals in Ontario.
Rush Street Interactive
Rush Street Interactive (RSI) said its BetRivers online casino and sportsbook are live and available to eligible players age 19 and older across the province, either online via BetRivers.ca or on the BetRivers mobile applications.
BetRivers operates an online casino that includes more than 350 of the latest slot machines and table games, along with loyalty and bonusing features for qualifying players. The BetRivers online sportsbook offers sports fans the opportunity to place single-game bets and single-game parlays on numerous leagues worldwide, including the NHL.
RSI now is active with real-money online gaming in three countries – the United States, Canada, and Colombia. Officials anticipate launching online casino and sports betting in Mexico in the second quarter of 2022.
Genius Sports
Genius Sports, which describes itself as the official data, technology and broadcast partner that powers the ecosystem connecting sports, betting and media, said it has obtained regulatory approval from the AGCO, enabling the company to launch with partners from the start of the Ontario online market opening.
The registration permits Genius Sports to provide its official data, sportsbook technology, media and trading services to operator partners, which include its CFL, CPL, AHL and NFL products and services.
“I am delighted that Genius Sports has become one of the first sportsbook providers to win approval from the AGCO,” Mark Locke, Genius Sports CEO and co-founder, said in a statement. “We are excited to be in a position to deliver our sportsbook data and technology to our customers in Ontario from day one.”
Bragg Gaming Group
Bragg Gaming Group, a global iGaming technology and content provider, said it has secured content distribution agreements with multiple iGaming operators pursuant to the supplier license it received from the AGCO.
Official with Bragg added the company has “several more deals in the pipeline,” saying the agreements contemplate a broad range of Bragg’s proprietary, exclusive iGaming content and will be announced as Bragg’s customers, including several well-known iGaming brands, go live in the newly regulated Ontario iGaming market.
“Ontario is our home market, and we are delighted to be in position to serve operators with our iGaming content and solutions as the market opens to customers across the province,” Chris Looney, Chief Commercial Officer at Bragg, said. “We believe the Ontario online gaming market offers a significant opportunity for our content and platform technology and we are excited by the interest shown in our offerings from local, US and international operators.”
Penn National Gaming
Penn National Gaming said its subsidiary, Score Digital Sports Ventures (Canada) Inc., which operates as “theScore Bet,” officially launched theScore Bet mobile Sportsbook and Casino in Ontario on iOS and Android devices.
According to Penn National, theScore Bet integrates with the company’s flagship media app, theScore, to deliver features that bring media and betting together in one ecosystem. The BET MODE feature allows fans to utilize theScore’s deep data, stats and content.
theScore Bet’s launch includes the debut of its online casino product, which features live dealer games, digital slots and table games such as blackjack, baccarat, and roulette, and exclusive live-dealer blackjack tables.
Penn National added theScore Bet’s initial slate of games include those from provider Evolution Games, and soon will expand its offering to include games from Penn Game Studios, Penn National’s in-house game studio.
