Canadian Lotteries Reviewing 'National' Sports Betting Bids

Government-owned lotto corporations in Atlantic Canada and British Columbia are reviewing quotes from business seeking to offer a "nationwide" sports betting platform that will take on offshore and uncontrolled online gaming operators.

- Lottery corporations in Atlantic Canada and British Columbia published an RFP in March looking for a "national" technology platform for sports wagering
- The lotteries are now examining bids to supply that platform and strategy to reveal the winner at a later date
- The winning bidder will be gotten in touch with to power a single brand, PROLINE, that lotteries will utilize to provide in-person and online sports betting, the latter in competitors versus overseas and uncontrolled operators

The Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC) and the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) published a request for proposals (RFP) in March for a "National Sports Betting Solution."

That technology is being looked for to power a single, familiar sportsbook brand - PROLINE - that the lottery games can use to offer in-person and online sports betting.

Bettors might then anticipate a consistent level of service from this PROLINE, whether they're in British Columbia or Prince Edward Island. ALC currently uses the PROLINE branding for its online sports betting efforts, while BCLC utilizes its PlayNow platform, which is also used in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

An ALC representative validated to Covers on Tuesday that the RFP closed on May 5 which submissions are now being reviewed.

"The outcomes of the RFP procedure will be publicly posted when a successful proponent has actually been determined," they included an email.

The winning bidder will offer ALC and BCLC, as well as Loto-Québec (LQ) and potentially other interested lottos, with sportsbook technology the government-owned corporations can utilize to take on the overseas and uncontrolled operators that continue to be popular in Canada.

Those "grey market" operators have actually been a thorn in the side of government-owned lottery game corporations for years, as they account for a big chunk of all online betting in Canada. On Monday, Manitoba's lotto was even granted an injunction against among those overseas operators, the Antigua and Barbuda-based Bodog.

Looks like a Manitoba court has actually given the local lottery and video gaming corporation an injunction against offshore sportsbook Bodog. Potentially in Canada, which has a large "grey market" for online gambling: pic.twitter.com/052Js8ZBzf

Having a single sportsbook brand in numerous jurisdictions might likewise make it easier for the lottos to hammer home the point that PROLINE is the only authorized site in their particular provinces.

Here's the situation

Trying to make that point today can be hard, as overseas operators are quickly accessible in jurisdictions where they are not authorized to do company. Bettors may not know or might not care about the legal status of a website.

Complicating matters even more is Ontario's launch of a competitive iGaming market in 2022 that authorized lots of private-sector sports wagering and gambling establishment gambling websites to run. Advertising by those sites can overflow into other provinces, such as B.C., where the sites are not licensed. Alberta is preparing to introduce a similar iGaming market.

BCLC has actually voiced concerns about Ontario-licensed brands marketing themselves outside of the latter province, and is stressed over what an Alberta launch will do. It's also been alleged Ontario-licensed websites are nudging players from outside the province towards affiliated sites that are based abroad.

What ALC and BCLC are seeking could enable them, and others, to point consumers to a single authorized brand name, PROLINE.

"The Operators are collaborating to choose a single Supplier with which they will each work out an agreement to supply an innovation platform along with the trading and liability management services that will make it possible for each of the Operators to provide sports wagering through the Supplier; jointly considered the National Sports Betting Solution," the RFP launched in March said. "This collaboration aims to use a best-in-class national sports wagering product under one brand 'PROLINE,' which different Canadian Lottery Corporations have actually used considering that 1992."

The government-owned Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., which went from being the province's only authorized sports wagering and iGaming operator to among 50, is getting a new sportsbook tech supplier: Kambi.

OLG's shift from FDJ to Kambi expected to be done in H2 of 2025. pic.twitter.com/rPzyyh3tE0

The RFP adds that additional provincial operators will deserve to sign up with the "collective," if and when they so choose.

Notably, Ontario's government-owned lotto and gaming corporation already uses the PROLINE brand for its retail and online sports wagering efforts.

Kambi? Could be!

Kambi Group PLC said in February that it is taking over as the sportsbook tech company for the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. (OLG) from FDJ Group.