Canadians Confused Over Legal iGaming, CLC Exec Says
Posted on: May 25, 2026, 01:08h.
Last updated on: May 25, 2026, 01:08h.
- Lack of clarity concerning igaming advertising has created confusion in the marketplace
- Cormier was named Executive Director of the Canadian Lottery Coalition in April
- Cormier said CLC supports Bill S-211: National Framework on Sports Betting Advertising Act
Molly Cormier, just a month into her new job as Executive Director of the Canadian Lottery Coalition (CLC), said one of her biggest challenges is to help clear up consumer confusion over what is legal igaming in the country and what is illegal.
Summit Canada Interview
The debate around the future of igaming advertising is at the foundation of all of that, she said in an interview with Casino.org during SBC Summit Canada in Toronto last week, where the topic emerged repeatedly in conversations among industry stakeholders and throughout panel discussions.
“I think it’s frustrating, especially when it comes to advertising, the confusion for Canadians when they are consuming advertising, especially from a foreign operator licensed in another province, targeting people in a province where they aren’t licensed,” she said. “Canadians are confused about what is legal and what is not. We owe Canadians legal clarity. That’s a real priority of mine.”
Industry Shifts
The CLC is a pan-Canadian alliance of provincial lottery corporations – Atlantic Lottery, Loto-Québec, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries, and British Columbia Lottery Corporation. Cormier is a former journalist and public relations practitioner who spent a decade with Atlantic Lottery, working in public relations, marketing, and policy engagement within Canada’s regulated gaming sector.
Rapid shifts in the Canadian igaming market since regulated single-event sports betting went live in provinces in August 2021, combined with the continued spread of illegal and unregulated online gambling websites targeting Canadians with misleading advertising and accepting real‑money wagers, is the policy challenge that led provincial lottery corporations to form the CLC in 2021.
Advertising Debate Top of Mind
“What is going to be the key question for the industry moving forward, is how they’re acting in Ontario and Alberta. How they’re using that social license is going to dictate whether it’s going to be able to be run through the rest of Canada,” said Patrick Harris, President of Rubicon Strategy, during a summit panel discussing what provincial market will potentially follow Ontario and Alberta into the regulated, private market space.
On advertising, I’ll just say there is way too much. It is dramatic. I think the industry is losing its social license with the public at an alarming rate, and I think if the industry doesn’t do something about it themselves, government’s going to do it.
“I highly recommend … the industry needs to come up with some tangible solutions to deal with the advertising issue.”
The winds of change are blowing, and there certainly is a perception out there of public fatigue regarding igaming advertising. More people are concerned about ad saturation during sports broadcasts, youth exposure and impacts on public health. Sports betting ads on national broadcasts hitting markets in Canada that don’t license big U.S. operators is another big concern, especially in provinces that operate government-run monopoly models.
A CBC report showed bettors in Manitoba seeing ads for Ontario-regulated sportsbooks and in some cases accessing those sportsbooks online despite not being in Ontario.
Inconsistent Enforcement
On top of that, Canadians will see ads for U.S-based operators like DraftKings and BetMGM during U.S. television sports broadcasts that advertise bonuses on sign-up. Bonusing for igaming is not legal in Ontario.
Enforcement is inconsistent and advertising lines are blurry, Cormier said, as consumers don’t understand what operators are regulated locally. And as a spokesperson at the summit said, what changes the minds of politicians is public opinion and money.
Bill S-211: National Framework on Sports Betting Advertising Act is making its way through federal Parliament, now before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. Once passed, it would see a national framework on sports betting ads created by the federal Heritage Minister, all geared at restricting those ads. It does not seek to ban sports betting advertising.
National Bills Sets Framework for Sports Betting Ads
On the other side, organizations like the Canadian Gaming Association argue that the issue around advertising falls under provincial jurisdiction, and that the provinces already are regulating igaming advertising heavily, especially around the usage of celebrities.
According to people in the industry, regarding advertising that runs on national broadcasts, Canadians have long accessed offshore betting sites anyway, legal operators are safer than unregulated offshore books, and advertising helps to channel bettors to the regulated environments.
Ontario’s Bill 107, introduced in the provincial legislature by a Liberal MPP Lee Fairclough, calling for the ban of all igaming advertising, was voted down earlier this month by the majority Conservative Party.
Provincial Bill Looked at Bannings Ads
Cormier said the CLC is supportive of Bill S-211. She’s not in support of a ban on advertising, and the bill is a step towards helping to create clearer national guardrails for the promotion and advertising of online gambling throughout Canada.
A national CLC television advertising campaign to educate Canadians on what is legal and what isn’t is something she will also consider, she said.
I’d love to do a national advertising campaign,” she added. “I am open to any conversation. What we’re noticing are some operators are advertising with parallel domains in different provinces that will then push people back to their international affiliates. There’s been marketing creative that’s specifically targeted to the citizens of that province where operators are not licensed to operate. That’s very frustrating. That confusion exists everywhere – with media personalities, senators. It just shows the level of complexity with the topic.
“We just want legal clarity, a level playing field, no matter what model the provinces are choosing (for their market). The coalition doesn’t exist to block whatever (igaming) model the province chooses.”
Getting Responsible Gambling Messaging in Front of Young Men
The industry needs to get in front in terms of messaging as young people, mostly males, are coming across gambling products more, and get more proactive with responsible gambling messaging, she added.
“When I go and I have coalition-related conversations with stakeholders who maybe are on the periphery of our industry or maybe completely outside of it, they’ll often say, I’m not a gambler, I don’t necessarily understand the industry, but they’re consistently bringing up personal stories about young people in their lives, especially males, and how they’re engaging with gambling products.”
Collier pointed to an Angus Reid igaming industry study, released last week. One-in-five parents with a child aged 10 to 17 said their child has already asked them about sports betting (half of these said they were asked by a son, 24% by a daughter, 17% by both).
“As an industry, we don’t want to put our heads in the sand, and say, everything’s fine, nothing to see here. The coalition has decided that a key part of our mandate is consumer protection.”
Bodog Legal Decision
The 2025 decision by the Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba which banned the grey market Bodog platform in the province showed the value of the coalition as well, Collier added. The reasoning of the Court’s decision in Manitoba would apply in every Coalition jurisdiction. Collier said she intends to build off the momentum of that decision.
“Something that I’ve also seen the provincial lottery corporations tackling, which is a bit of evolution, compared to 10 years ago, is because of that public interest mandate, and that social purpose is at the heart of who they are, they’ve really been leaning into their responsibility to educate people about the products that they’re offering,” she said.
“No matter what the gaming model looks like in Canada, we believe there’s a purpose for a coalition, a pan-Canadian alliance of organizations who want a national voice and presence, and an ability to influence policy on a national level. Competition is healthy, and it’s up to the provincial governments to decide what model works in provinces.”
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