On Thursday, iGaming Ontario made it official with the release of a Q4 and full-year market performance report for the province’s Ontario betting sites.
On April 4, iGO executive director Martha Otton released a taste of what the numbers were looking like at a Canadian Gaming Association event celebrating the one-year anniversary of Ontario’s regulated iGaming market. Thursday, the organization made it official.
Total Wagers Hit $13.9B in Q4 of Fiscal Year
In Q4 for legal, regulated Ontario online casinos and sports betting (actually the first quarter of the 2023 calendar year, Jan. 1 to March 31), total wagers in Ontario added up to $13.9 billion Canadian, with total gaming revenue of $526 million.
That $13.9 billion in total wagers combined sports and online casino, separate numbers for those two categories are not reported. That total handle was a 20.6% increase over the $11.53 billion reported in fiscal year Q3 (Oct. 1 to Dec. 31, 2022). The gaming revenue rose 15.1% from Q3’s $457 million.
Total wagers do not include promotional wagers, or bonuses. Total gaming revenue reported by iGaming Ontario represents total cash wagers, including rake fees, tournament fees and other fees across all operators minus player winnings from cash wagers, not taking into account operating costs or other liabilities.
Massive Growth Quarter Over Quarter
Total wagers in Q1 (April to June 2022) were at $4.08 billion, with gaming revenue at $162 million. So based on that, according to iGO, the legal iGaming market in Ontario has on average grown by more than 50% in total wagers and gaming revenue each quarter.
There were 44 operators and 75 gaming websites live in the province in Q4. There were 1.01 million active player accounts and average monthly spend per active player account was $174. An important point to remember there – active player accounts do not represent unique players since individuals have active Ontario sportsbook apps and iGaming accounts with multiple operators.
Total Wagers Hit $35.5B At One-Year Mark
Total wagers for the full fiscal year in Ontario were at $35.5 billion, and total gaming revenue for the full year was $1.4 billion. There were 45 operators over the first year and 76 gaming websites. There were 1.65 million player accounts active over the course of the first year and the average monthly spend per active player account over the year was $70.
Basketball was the more popular sport based on total wagers in Year 1, at 29%, followed by soccer (15%), football (13%), hockey (9%) and baseball (8%).
And on the casino front, in terms of breakdown by total wagers, 48% were on Ontario online slots, 32% on table games with a live dealer, and the balance (19%) on computer-based table games.
iGaming Ontario works collaboratively with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and the provincial government to conduct and manage internet gaming offerings via private operators in Ontario. Gaming companies that have successfully registered with the AGCO must also execute an operating agreement with iGO.
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