Canada
PlayIllinois.com: Sports betting nearly reaches $600 million in September
Football fueled a surge in betting in September at Illinois sportsbooks, which combined to generate nearly $600 million in wagers. September’s handle was short of the state record of $633.6 million in March, dampened by an in-person online registration rule that will likely be lifted on March 5, according to PlayIllinois, which tracks the state’s regulated online gaming and sports betting market.
“September will set a U.S. record for legal sports betting, and Illinois was able to meet those expectations,” said Joe Boozell, lead analyst for PlayIllinois.com. “But as strong as September’s results were, in-person registration continues to limit Illinois’ ceiling. Assuming the governor signs the bill that will put an end to the rule on March 5, Illinois will begin breaking through this monthly handle plateau in spring.”
Bettors poured $596.5 million in wagers into Illinois retail and online sportsbooks in September, up 95.4% from $305.2 million in September 2020 and up 49% from $400.4 million in August, according to official data released Monday. September’s handle equates to $19.9 million in bets per day, up from $10.2 million per day in September 2020 and up from $12.9 million over the 31 days of August.
Accordingly, gross revenue rose 279.3% to $44.6 million in September from $11.8 million in September 2020 and up 36.3% from $32.7 million in August. That led to $40.0 million in adjusted gross revenue in September, yielding $6.5 million in state and local taxes.
With the first three weekends of the NFL and a full month of college games played in September, football drew $230.6 million in wagers. That is up from just $17.2 million in August. Baseball attracted $115.9 million in bets, down from $139.6 million in August. Tennis ($55.3 million) and soccer ($34.3 million) also generated significant interest.
“The NFL, and to a lesser extent college football, is irreplaceable in its ability to motivate bettors,” Boozell said. “General interest in football helps Illinois’ sportsbooks overcome the struggles of the Chicago Bears, and the ban on betting on in-state college teams. Plus, sportsbooks continued to capitalize on the playoff run by the White Sox in September.”
Only New Jersey ($1.01 billion) and Nevada ($786.7 million) attracted more bets during September than Illinois, which surpassed Pennsylvania’s $578.8 million.
Since launching legal sports betting in 2020, Illinois has generated:
- $6.5 billion in wagers, fourth most among all markets during that time
- $508.3 million in gross revenue
- $78.3 million in state taxes
“With the end to in-person registration in sight, Illinois’ future is awfully bright again,” said Eric Ramsey, analyst for the PlayUSA.com Network, which includes PlayIllinois.com. “It is not difficult to imagine a world where it is again challenging the nation’s largest sports betting markets.”
Online betting accounted for 95.5%, or $569.9 million, of the state’s handle in September. DraftKings/Casino Queen topped the state with $236.5 million in combined online and retail handle, up from $149.2 million in August. That included an Illinois-best $232.1 million in online wagers. The operator took in $8.0 million in gross revenue on September’s bets, up from $11.3 million in August.
FanDuel was again second with $156.2 million in online and retail wagers, up from $111.5 million in bets in August. $155.0 million of August’s wagers came online. FanDuel’s combined handle created $18.0 million in gross revenue.
The leaders were followed by:
- BetRivers/Rivers Casino ($98.5 million in wagers, including $87.3 million online; $9.3 million in revenue)
- Barstool/Hollywood Aurora ($46.5 million in wagers, including $45.3 million online; $4.2 million in revenue)
- PointsBet/Hawthorne Race Course ($43.9 million in wagers, including $41.9 million online; $3.6 million in revenue)
- Caesars by William Hill/Grand Victoria ($9.4 million in wagers, including $8.2 million online; $595,393 in revenue)
- Argosy ($3.3 million in retail wagers; $412,858 in revenue)
- Hollywood Joliet ($1.3 million in retail wagers; $257,992 in revenue)
- Par-A-Dice ($629,829 in wagers; $159,804 in revenue)
“DraftKings and FanDuel have been the main beneficiaries of Illinois’ relatively small roster of operators, which is still absent some of the nation’s largest operators, including No. 3 BetMGM,” Ramsey said. “Ideally, with the latest changes there will be renewed interest in Illinois from operators.
Powered by WPeMatico
Canada
FanDuel Announces New Partnership with Toronto Tempo
FanDuel has announced a new partnership with the Toronto Tempo, becoming its first official iGaming partner.
This multi-year agreement brings together two brands committed to expanding women’s sports in Canada. Through this collaboration, FanDuel positions itself as the best Sportsbook and Casino for fans to engage with Canada’s women’s team, bringing them closer to the action and women’s basketball than ever before.
“Partnering with the Toronto Tempo in their inaugural season is an exciting opportunity for FanDuel customers and basketball fans. As a company that shares the same passion for community and empowering women’s sports, we are proud to support a new franchise that will celebrate fans and elevate women’s professional sports in Canada,” said Tom Burdakin, Vice President of Marketing at FanDuel.
“One word to describe this partnership is transformative. Welcoming FanDuel marks a significant milestone for our organization as we continue to build Canada’s first WNBA team and deepen fan engagement,” said Lisa Ferkul, Chief Revenue Officer at Toronto Tempo.
FanDuel has had a front row seat to the growth of women’s sports in recent years as a proud official partner of the WNBA. Through this partnership and FanDuel’s best in class WNBA offering, fans can engage in more ways than any other platform from tip-off to buzzer.
As the first Sportsbook and Casino partner, FanDuel and the Toronto Tempo will bring exclusive fan initiatives to FanDuel’s customers, as well as in-arena visibility and digital activations to connect fans with the excitement of the WNBA both on and off the court.
The post FanDuel Announces New Partnership with Toronto Tempo appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Canada
Canadian Lottery Coalition Names Molly Cormier as Executive Director
The Canadian Lottery Coalition (CLC) announced the appointment of Molly Cormier as Executive Director.
Cormier joins the Coalition from Atlantic Lottery (AL), bringing extensive experience in public relations, marketing, and policy engagement within Canada’s regulated gaming sector. She has worked closely with governments and regulators on responsible gambling and consumer protection, and previously served with the Government of New Brunswick. Her background as a journalist further informs her work at the intersection of regulation, public policy and public accountability. Cormier will lead the CLC’s work with governments, regulators, and industry stakeholders as Canada responds to the rapid growth of online gambling and the policy challenges that have come with it.
Since online single‑event sports betting was legalized in Canada in August 2021 – and accelerated by Ontario’s launch of an open iGaming model in April 2022 – Canadians from coast to coast have experienced a sharp increase in gambling advertising, particularly across live sports, in local sports and entertainment venues, and on digital media. That rapid shift, 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 Canadian Lottery Coalition in 2021. Established decades ago by their respective provincial governments, these lottery corporations have social purpose at the core of their mandates; prioritizing the prevention of gambling-related harms while generating revenues that fund essential public services and community priorities.
“Molly brings the experience, leadership and judgment the Coalition needs as governments and regulators confront growing challenges around gambling advertising and consumer protection. She understands the urgency of supporting player health, especially in the face of clear gaps in federal law and enforcement,” said Dallas McCready, President and CEO of AL and a member of the CLC Executive Board.
The Canadian Lottery Coalition is a pan-Canadian alliance of provincial lottery corporations – AL, Loto-Québec, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries, and British Columbia Lottery Corporation – that hold the authority to manage and operate gambling in their respective provinces. The Coalition’s mandate is to collaborate in order to advance a gambling market in Canada where player health is prioritized and protected by strong, enforceable laws; legal gambling is clearly distinguishable from illegal and unregulated offerings; and provincially regulated lotteries continue to deliver social and economic benefit to communities across the country.
“I am pleased to join the Coalition at a time when the need for clear, coordinated national policy to protect player health, especially among young Canadians, has never been greater. My priorities will be to address gaps in federal legislation and regulation related to the promotion and advertising of online gambling, particularly sports betting; respond to the continued proliferation of illegal online gambling websites in Canada; and strengthen collaboration with governments, regulators and industry stakeholders. Canadians should be able to clearly distinguish between legal, accountable gambling options and offshore sites that operate outside Canadian and provincial laws and public safeguards,” said Cormier.
The Coalition will continue to advocate for policy approaches that put responsible gambling, consumer protection and regulatory integrity first. That includes support for Bill S-211, National Framework on Sports Betting Advertising Act, currently making its way through Parliament. The new bill is a meaningful first step that seeks to establish a national framework for sports betting advertising and would help create clearer national guardrails for the promotion and advertising of online gambling throughout Canada.
The Coalition also sees the 2025 Manitoba court decision against Bodog as an important step forward in its mandate. The Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba found that Bodog had no lawful authority to offer or advertise online gambling products and services in Manitoba, a significant win for consumer protection, enforcement and the integrity of Canada’s provincially regulated system. The reasoning of the Court’s decision in Manitoba would apply in every Coalition jurisdiction.
The post Canadian Lottery Coalition Names Molly Cormier as Executive Director appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Bede Gaming
PointsBet Canada rolls out Bede Gaming aggregation and bonusing platform
PointsBet Canada has launched a new iCasino aggregation and bonusing platform supplied by Bede Gaming, rolling the solution into its live player environment in Ontario.
The operator said it selected Bede following a competitive process to add external content aggregation and player engagement capabilities for the regulated Canadian iGaming market. PointsBet Canada runs pointsbet.ca on a proprietary platform originally developed by its Australian-based parent company.
Bede’s open-API aggregation platform gives PointsBet Canada access to a broader casino catalogue, with the supplier naming Games Global, Pragmatic Play, Play’n GO and Light & Wonder among the available content providers.
PointsBet Canada said the platform will support its casino strategy through promotion management and campaign tooling, including “advanced campaign workflows, and automated player lifecycle segmentation.” Bede also said it will provide “a reliable infrastructure with 99.99% uptime, and 24/7 monitoring from its Network Operations Centre.”
“Our strategy emphasizes delivering outstanding digital content that creates exceptional player engagement,” said Scott Vanderwel, Chief Executive Officer of PointsBet Canada. “I’m excited by the innovative tools we now have available with Bede. This partnership positions us strongly in Ontario and prepares us for future growth across additional Canadian markets.”
Bede said the deal is multi-year and includes a roadmap for potential future provincial launches, “including Alberta, as new regulated markets emerge in Canada.”
The post PointsBet Canada rolls out Bede Gaming aggregation and bonusing platform appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
-
Betsson6 days agoWhat the Betsson/Inter Milan case reveals about cross-border gambling branding when two restrictive regimes collide
-
Balkans6 days agoCT Interactive Expands its Certified Portfolio in Bulgaria
-
Africa5 days agoAmusnet and Goldrush Strike Strategic Partnership to Enhance SA Online Gaming
-
AGLC5 days agoInspired Entertainment Secures Alberta iGaming Supplier Registration
-
ABBIATI Casino Equipment6 days agoAbbiati to Exhibit at G2E Asia 2026
-
Betting and Gaming Council5 days agoBetting and Gaming Council Appoints Kane Purdy as New Chair
-
1spin4win5 days ago1spin4win partners with OdiBets to strengthen its presence in Africa
-
Eastern Europe5 days agoSoft2Bet launches Zinx iGaming and sportsbook brand in Romania



