There has been considerable expansion in the US gambling industry in recent years. However, increased focus is being placed on the Canadian market, particularly in Ontario.
Both BetVictor and theScore are going to be operating in the Canadian province. For theScore, they will be ending their US operations on July 1 and focusing more on what’s happening across the US border.
They run the Barstool Sportsbook and the move comes eight months after their business was acquired by Penn National Gaming for $2.1bn. When that took place, Penn said that they had the intention of operating theScore as a standalone business.
That’s the case now with Barstool operating in the US and theScore now taking advantage of the fact independent gambling companies can now open in Ontario.
The President and COO of theScore is Benjie Levy. Speaking about the decision he believes it will allow them to “maximise the value of both brands through our organic media and gaming approach.” He added that integrating theScore media app with the Barstool Sportsbook is “key to our strategy.”
June 15 will see theScore end the accepting of new wagers and customer deposits in America. It’s believed that they will be suggesting to their US customers that they open accounts with the Barstool Sportsbook. Whether accounts can just be transferred isn’t yet known.
The company already has a footing in Ontario. Around 79 per cent of those betting on sport in the Canadian province used theScore’s app in the first month after sports betting was legalised on April 4 of this year.
Also heading to Ontario are the British bookmaker BetVictor. Their parent company BV Gaming has applied for and been granted a licence to operate a sportsbook and offer casino games in the province.
Their licence was granted by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. It runs until 2 June 2023. They face a lot of opposition in the province. Others who already have licenses and a head-start on them, include: Unibet, 888, PointsBet, Bwin, Bet365, FanDuel, BetMGM, Caesars, the Score and DraftKings.
The Ontario sports betting market has been going well since the April launch. It was a long process though to get to that launch date. April 2019 saw plans released by the Ontario government that aimed to end the online gambling monopoly held by the lottery.
Last September saw the final standards for online gaming and betting published. Then came the application process for licenses and finally the big day arrived when independent gambling companies could begin operating in the province.
