2025 was a big year of transition for the Canadian gambling market. In retrospect it will be seen as the year that online casinos and sports betting really approached parity with land-based gambling in Canada, after many years of converging revenues.
Throughout the year online casinos in Ontario really took off, posting several months of record profits. On the other hand the long-dominant land-based casino gaming sector seemingly fell off. Although data is less clear, shares in large operator Great Canadian Entertainment fell steadily over the year and it sold off several properties in B.C. Is this a trend that will continue in 2026 as our world becomes ever more digital?
Online Casinos are Booming, Record Revenues Throughout the Year
The biggest story of the year was undoubtedly the strong performance of Ontario’s online casino market. Online casinos in the province took a record $7.95 billion in wagers in November 2025. Unlike in much of the world, online casino gaming dominates sports betting in Ontario (and the rest of Canada), with 85% of the online gambling revenue coming from casinos.
Similarly, 85% of Ontarians who gamble now used licensed operators. That’s a larger uptake than is estimated for many American states that have legalized online casinos in recent years.
Over the year, regulated online gambling in Ontario made $3.2 billion in revenue. The market is also expected to continue to grow in the near future, at around 5% to 10% a year depending on estimates. So why has it been so successful, especially compared to recent US launches (which haven’t exactly been doing bad numbers)?
Well, expanded choice is one reason. When Ontario regulated online casinos in 2022 it set no limits on the number of licenses, and wasn’t strict about letting operators with previous offshore connections apply. Today there are 48 casinos and sportsbooks regulated by the The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, which is a lot more choice than any American state.
Land-Based Operators Struggle, Provinces Want More Investment
In a competitive market like this, Canadian gamblers are obviously looking for the coolest payout online casino they can find. However, that is no simple task for many reasons. Which is why expert comparison sites are important to the market. Long-time casino players with real experience know the question of payouts is one that needs breaking down into multiple factors, so players can make informed choices.
Using tools like these, and others, it seems more Canadians every day are deciding that land-based casinos don’t offer quite the same value as online options. Add emotional UX design, personalized bonuses and seasonal events into the mix and you can see why online casino gaming is on the ascendence.
Canada’s biggest land-based casino operator – Great Canadian Entertainment – is now privately owned and so doesn’t publish regular financials to the public. But, various events and reports into the company can paint a picture. And it’s a concerning one for the most part.
At a time when online casinos are growing anyway, Canada’s tensions with US have meant physical slot machine imports across the border have slowed considerably. In some states even to zero. That has left Canadian casino resorts without the latest games, including popular releases from global developers like IGT and Konami.
Tourism between the two countries has also fallen, with less US visitors crossing the border to visit Great Canadian’s casinos in Toronto and Vancouver, as well as the four casinos near the famous Niagara Falls. And less Canadians heading south too. This currently frosty relationship has affected tourism in the regional gambling hub Las Vegas, Nevada, where tourism numbers are down significantly year-on-year.
Great Canadian recently sold up six of its smaller casino properties in British Columbia, just two years after opening its billion dollar Great Canadian Casino Resort in Toronto.
On the other hand, Ontario Premier Doug Ford has pushed hard to promote the land-based casino sector and several large new casinos did open across the nation in recent years. In late in December, perhaps in response to the global concerns over dependence on the US economy, Ford revealed a new plan to turn the Niagara region into an international resort destination centre – and that vision apparently includes at least one new billion dollar casino resort.
Ford said discussion was underway with Mohegan, who are currently under contract to run Fallsview Casino and Casino Niagara, to expand either of those casinos or build a new one. But if that didn’t work, he said, Ontario was ready to put an open call out to casino operators in Las Vegas and elsewhere.
What Trends Will Continue into 2026?
Expect online casinos to continue to grow across Canada, whether Ford’s plan comes to fruition or not. Alberta looks very likely to open a regulated online casino market this year. In June 2025, Dale Nally, Alberta’s Minister of Service and Red Tape Reduction, told The Canadian Gaming Summit in Toronto that plans were underway and a big announcement would be coming in early 2026.
As well as online casinos themselves, businesses supplying online gambling operators with services they need for operations are also expanding. The increased revenue from casinos not only funds taxes but also is paid out to marketing firms, lawyers or regulatory experts and back-end tech and infrastructure development such as successful Canadian geolocation technology company GeoComply.
With all this expansion though, regulator and public pushback will be expected in some way or another. In 2025, several bills aiming to tighten online casino and sports betting advertising rules almost made it through the Canadian Parliament, and few would bet against the same politicians having another go in 2026.
