The headline numbers
Year-four GGY landed at CAD 3.1 billion, up 12% year over year and comfortably ahead of the original Ministry of Finance projections. Total wagered handle crossed CAD 89 billion for the year. Casino products (slots, live dealer, table games) accounted for about 68% of GGY; sports betting the remaining 32%.
Registered player accounts crossed 2 million active in the province, with average net deposits per player broadly flat year over year, suggesting the growth is coming from more players, not heavier existing players. That's what the framework was designed to produce.
The operator mix
50-plus operators now hold Ontario licences. The top three (Bet365, FanDuel and DraftKings across sports; Rush Street's BetRivers, Bally's and PokerStars strong on casino) still control roughly 55% of GGY, high but slowly diluting as newer entrants add market share.
Notable additions in 2026: Stake.com launched a UGC-compliant Ontario product in Q1; Hard Rock's cross-brand cash-out feature has moved market share meaningfully; and a wave of Canadian-native brands (BetVictor Canada, NorthStar) picked up ground on the pure US-import operators.
Migration from the gray market
The most important number in the report is quieter: iGO estimates roughly 87% of Ontario online gambling now happens on regulated sites, up from 68% at launch. That's the migration story the framework was designed to deliver.
The remaining 13% split roughly between (a) players deliberately choosing offshore for bigger bonuses or non-KYC access, and (b) crypto-native players whose preferred sites don't run Ontario licences. The regulator hasn't signalled aggressive action on either group for now.
Lessons for other markets
Ontario is now the reference case for provincial or state-level regulated iGaming markets outside the US. Three lessons other jurisdictions are drawing from it:
- Realistic tax rates. Ontario's 20% GGY rate is high enough to fund oversight but low enough to keep operators competitive against offshore alternatives.
- Real-money migration takes 2-3 years. The full offshore-to-regulated shift didn't happen at launch. It took year-two enforcement and year-three player education to move the needle.
- Product breadth matters. Allowing live dealer, casino, poker and sports under one operator umbrella beat single-vertical experiments elsewhere.
Alberta is watching all of this closely as it prepares its own framework for 2026-2027.
Frequently asked questions
Can non-Ontario Canadians play at Ontario-licensed casinos?
Not officially. Ontario-licensed operators geofence to province residents. Other provinces still route through their provincial monopoly platforms or fall back on offshore options.
Is Alberta launching a similar framework?
Alberta has signalled a private-market model for 2026-27, drawing heavily on Ontario's licensing template. Timing is still not firm.
Do Ontario operators accept crypto?
Currently no. iGO framework requires CAD-denominated wagering with regulated payment rails. Crypto casinos operate outside the framework and remain gray-market for Ontario players.
Amelia Foster
Bio coming soon. Independent, no paid placements, real deposits and stopwatch-timed payouts.
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