The last quarter was a mixed bag for Ontario online poker.
Ontario’s six real money online poker operators combined for CAD $18 million in revenue in Q2, according to the provincial regulator, iGaming Ontario (iGO). That means the second quarter, the period that ended on September 30, was the second-highest three-month period for online poker revenue since the regulated poker market launched in April 2022.
Online poker revenue was up 12.5%, on both a year-over-year basis and compared to the preceding quarter; poker grossed $16 million in both Q2 2023 and Q1 2024. Data from iGO show poker has entered a pattern where revenue improves every year starting with its Q1 — suggesting the floor for revenue in Q1 2025 could very well be $17 million or more.
Not bad.
Peer-to-peer poker also racked up $417 million in wagers during Q2, making the quarter the third-highest overall for wagers, at least since iGO started to report poker wagers (and revenue) separately from online casino gaming and sports betting.
Wagers from poker also show a pattern where operators improve each year after Q1. The face that poker wagers totaled $402 million in Q1 2024, the period that ended on March 31 of this year, suggests the floor for wagers in Q1 2025 could be around $410 million.
Also, not bad.
But two ongoing developments suggest even better quarters lay ahead for online poker in Ontario.
More Shared Liquidity on Horizon
Both ongoing developments involve shared liquidity — quite a bit of it.
On one front, Ontario AG Doug Downey will be heading to the province’s highest court next month to see if online poker operators can rejoin the international player pool. Downey first petitioned the Court of Appeal for Ontario through an Order in Council filed on February 2.
Downey wants the court to decide whether international play is legal or runs afoul of the federal Criminal Code. The Supreme Court of Canada will likely have the final word on the matter, but a ruling in favor of allowing international play would greatly expand shared liquidity — and lead to bigger prize pools and bigger prizes.
It would also mark a total reversal by iGO on whether Ontario should be a segregated market for online poker. Back in 2022, regulators ring fenced the province and compelled operators like GGPoker and PokerStars to serve Ontario players through licenses issued by the province, not from offshore.
Today, it appears that Ontario’s online poker operators have adopted game integrity and player protections to iGO’s liking. Regulators have also been lobbied by GGPoker and the Canadian Gaming Association (CGA) for a return of international liquidity.
If it happens, Ontario could conceivably share liquidity with a host of European markets, including Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK.
It should be noted that many online poker players in Ontario, who initially opposed the province being ring fenced, are now against the province rejoining the international player pool. These players argue that the current setup is better because there are more regular and recreational players — with soft games allowing more players to turn a profit.
A three-day hearing is scheduled to begin on November 26.
Meanwhile, Dale Nally, the Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction, said in an interview on the sidelines of the G2E conference in Las Vegas earlier this month that Alberta plans to share liquidity with Ontario — that is, once it launches a regulated market for real money online poker.
There isn’t a timeline for the launch of Alberta online poker or other igaming. Industry watchers say a 2026 launch seems the most plausible at this early stage.
Alberta is Canada’s fourth-most populous province, with nearly 4.9 million residents, according to official estimates. Ontario has the most residents of any province with 16.1 million — which means a combined player pool between the two would cover a population of 21 million.
Creation of a gaming compact between Alberta and Ontario would boost the six operators active in the province — 888poker Ontario, BetMGM Poker, Bwin Poker, GGPoker Ontario, PartyPoker ON, and PokerStars Ontario.
More Operators Possible, Too
It’s possible that Ontario could also see two new online poker rooms open soon. Rush Street Interactive (RSI) is close to launching BetRivers Poker in Pennsylvania — it could roll the platform out north of the border, too as BetRivers Poker Ontario.
DraftKings Poker launched a lottery-style, sit and go tournament poker app, Electric Poker, in Michigan in August and in Pennsylvania earlier this month. A launch in Ontario is also possible.
Ontario is the most populous jurisdiction in North America with regulated igaming where BetRivers Poker and Electric Poker could both launch.
