While we’ve given you plenty of information about the best Ontario sports betting apps, it is also critical to cover the overall legality of the Ontario mobile betting industry. Legality is a critical consideration, as gamblers can step into hot water if they are betting on illegal websites, as they are more likely to fall victim to scams. So, let's dive into whether Ontario betting apps are legal.
To put a long story short, betting apps in Ontario are legal. The industry has changed massively since the 2020s began, and now, sports betting in Ontario is a legal, government-regulated market. For quite a while, gambling was something of a gray area in the province. But this has changed dramatically, opening the door to a huge number of new operators entering the province.
The situation prior to 2021 was that sports betting was not legal across Canada. It was an offence in the Criminal Code to wager on single-game sporting events, although this was never enforced by the government. People would wager on offshore betting sites and apps.
In 2021, Bill C-218 was passed. This removed the prohibition on single-game sports betting and ushered in a new era. Ontario was the first province to fully embrace the changes this brought. In 2022, Ontario rolled out its iGaming program, which was a fully government-regulated and legalized form of sports betting.
Sports betting apps and websites that received an iGaming license could legally advertise and operate within the province. Many major brands saw the writing on the wall and embraced this change. The companies that did were able to launch mobile apps in the province that are downloadable on the Apple App or Google Play Stores.
There are now a large number of different betting apps that are fully licensed and regulated in the province. This has led to a more secure, safe, and profitable environment for everyone involved. It has also led to betting apps in Ontario taking off as major legitimate businesses.