This Week in Sports Betting News – December 17th, 2021

Chris Altman Sports Betting Expert

4 minute read

ALBERTA PLANS TO EXPAND SPORTS BETTING LICENSE AVAILABILITY

C-218 expanded Canada’s ability to offer sports betting into the single-wager space. Now that the full scope of legal bets can be offered on a province-by-province basis, Alberta is looking to move past having a single-operator model like most other provinces.

Ontario is the model for this plan to open up commercial licenses in Alberta, as the former is slowly going through the process of establishing rules and a license framework there. Alberta will follow suit but in a more conservative fashion, planning to offer just two commercial licenses to sporting venues in the province.

Kandice Machado, president and CEO of the AGLC (Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission), had this to say:

“By opening retail sports betting up to two proponents now, AGLC is able to bring this service to sports fans in Alberta earlier in 2022. If AGLC were to open the market up to all vendors, the process required to bring the service to Albertans would be significantly delayed.”

Her support, vice president of gaming and cannabis Steve Lautischer, added:

“This is the first step in creating a new industry throughout the province. The hope is that the first set of retail sportsbooks are operating later in 2022.”

We can hope for a mid-2022 date for two commercial operators to be able to apply for a sports betting license in the province, opening up the market. It’s likely that an operator with an NHL partnership (FanDuel or DraftKings) will head up the branding and technology for the venue-partnered sportsbooks- more details will come in 2022.

OHIO QUICKLY PASSES SPORTS BETTING BILL

HB29, Ohio’s latest attempt at sports betting legislation, was able to pass both the House and the Senate last week, to a bit of surprise. Up until early December 2021, it was looking like the bill wasn’t going to see the light of the 2021 sun, and was expected to be tabled until next year’s session.

However, in a rare moment of compromise, amendments to the bill were made that allowed for state Senators and House Reps to agree to move the bill forward. Said bill has approval from Governor Mike DeWine, whom has been quoted more than once saying that it is “time” for sports betting legislation in the Buckeye State.

FUTURE OF FLORIDA SPORTS BETTING IN LIMBO AFTER LEGAL SHUTDOWN

If you weren’t aware, rapid developments in the Sunshine State meant that bettors had access to legal wagers for about a month before a stay was denied in the D.C. Court of Appeals. After said denial, the Seminole Tribe (in an agreement with Governor DeSantis) had their right to offer online sports betting in the state rescinded.

Pre-2021, the tribal compact between the Seminoles and the Florida state government allowed for some limited forms of in-person gambling, but not online sports betting. The 2021 agreements are now considered null and void, meaning that the interested parties are going to have to start from square one to again legalize mobile sportsbooks in the state.

The Seminoles are still waiting to hear the final word from the Court of Appeals, but the chances of their petition being considered after a denied stay are slim. Even if they are able to petition against the changes, the earliest chance for oral arguments to be presented in court would likely be around spring 2022 due to scheduling and typical turnarounds for petitions.

Predictions are difficult to make, especially in the world of legislating legal sports betting, but it’s unlikely that Florida will see online sportsbooks pop back up until mid-2022 on the most optimistic timeline.

CANADA’S PRIVATELY OWNED SPORTSBOOKS WAIT PATIENTLY FOR LAUNCH APPROVAL

Privately-owned (read: commercial, not run by state lotteries) sportsbooks like DraftKings and FanDuel are forging partnerships with the NHL both in the US and Canada. They’re also patiently waiting for provincial gaming commissions to start offering sports betting licenses: Ontario and Alberta are two markets expected to open to commercial applicants.

However, strangely, Ontario is one province that will allow offshore sportsbooks that were formally illegal before C-218 to apply for licensure there. This differs directly from the United States, where offshore operators are barred from offering legal betting. It seems this quirk in the licensing process in addition to other bureaucratic and clerical factors are stalling Ontario’s ability to start offering licenses to commercial operators.

In other provinces, the state-run gaming commission partners with the state lottery (or, in some cases like British Columbia, is the same entity) to offer legal betting, which some consider to be a “monopolized” system with no competition.

By opening the market, Ontario and Alberta hope to encourage safe and legal betting over illegal, black market bets: but in a strange move, they’ll still allow offshore operators to apply for a legal betting license. With 20 seats at the table in Ontario, look for legitimate books with good reputations in other countries.

Written by Chris Altman, our US Sports Betting Industry expert. You can learn more about our author’s expertise here.

Chris Altman

Chris Altman is a sports betting writer and content expert with almost a decade of experience. He's covered everything, but his current focus is on reviewing sportsbooks and online casinos and keeping tabs on sports betting legislation. Chris has been with VegasInsider since 2019 and has freelanced in the sports betting content industry for years. More from Chris Altman