CANADIAN SPORTS BETTING PROVES BENEFICIAL FOR THE CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Single-game sports betting has been legalized in Canada for about a month now, since August 27th. And, many organizations in Canada have celebrated the arrival of Canadian sports betting. This is especially true for the Canadian Football League.

Single-game sports betting has now been legalized in British Columbia and Ontario among other Canadian provinces.

The nine-team Canadian Football League lost out on a large amount of money last year due to a global emergency that kept them from playing for the 2020 CFL season. Now, it looks like Canadian sports betting will hopefully be able to help the league earn some of that money back.

The commissioner of the CFL, Randy Ambrosie, feels that this is a once in a generation opportunity. He sees it as an opportunity for revenue enhancement. Not only does he feel that the timing is perfect, he feels it is potentially one of the single biggest opportunities that the Canadian Football League has been offered.

He hopes that Canadian sports betting will help the league recover quicker than it would have otherwise. The president and CEO of the Edmonton Elks, Chris Presson, is also excited about single-game sports betting in Canada. He feels it could be a real game changer for the Canadian Football League.

He is excited not just by the earning potential but also by the greater fan engagement that sports betting could bring to the CFL. At this time, there are a lot of Canadians who do not really care about the CFL. But, by bringing in the excitement of Canadian sports betting, that could change.

As people wager on games, they will care more about the games and their outcomes. So, hopefully that can bring in more fans. The CEO of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the Grey Cup champions, Wade Miller, is estimating that Canadian sports betting could bring in revenue to the league in the form of seven-figures.

This is because football is a big sport when it comes to sports betting. Still, the NFL remains the boss when it comes to the North American sports betting market. And, it is very likely that the CFL will never be able to match the NFL when it comes to sports betting.

But, if the CFL can grab even a small percentage of the NFL betting market in Canada, that will still be a big profit. This idea is backed by Canadian MP Kevin Waugh. He was the driving force behind the bill that legalized single-sports betting in Canada, Bill C-218.

At this time, the CFL has already signed an agreement with BetRegal, a Canadian-owned online sportsbook. BetRegal is now the Official Sport Gaming Partner of the CFL.

The CEO of BetRegal, Michael Mirtl, believes that the new landscape that sports betting brings in to Canada could amount to a new fan experience for the CFL. The CFL and BetRegal have partnered up to offer CFL squares and the Race to the 108th Grey Cup. The Race to the 108th Grey Cup game is a Pick’Em style game that allows fans to predict scores and pick winners.

And, there will be even more possibilities coming for the CFL when it comes to Canadian sports betting. The president of the Canadian Gaming Association, Paul Burns, knows that the CFL is anxious to take advantage of any possibilities they can with Canadian sports betting.

It is estimated that the CFL could end up generating $1.5 million to $2 million per season through the sale to betting sites of their statistical data. Which means it could be a significant revenue stream for the CFL soon.

A CFL-specific mobile app is also reportedly in the works through a partnership with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Written by our US sports betting industry expert, Allie Nelson. You can learn more about Allie's expertise here.