Public Gaming Companies Are Big Winners In Ontario's Single Game Sports Betting Rollout

A bold new chapter in sports betting is coming to Ontario—Canada’s most populous province. On April 4. sports fans will be able to wager on single-game sporting events for the first time. Furthermore, the monopoly in multiple-game parlay style betting held by Proline—owned by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation—will give way to competition from several major sportsbooks—some with parent companies that are publicly traded. 

The genesis of single game sports betting in Ontario began in August 2021, when the federal government legalized single game wagering in Canada. Bill C-218 passed into law as the Safe & Regulated Sports Act and granted provinces and territories the power to regulate sports wagering as they saw fit. Plagued by massive budget deficits that are among the highest in the nation, sports betting measured eventually garnered provincial approval. It is expected single game sports betting will add a much-needed revenue infusion for the province, which has seen a substantial decline in casino gaming revenue during the COVD pandemic.

That enactment of Bill C-218 has lead to a rush of applications from foreign domiciled companies to enter the market. They are wooed by the aggregate size of the Ontario sports betting market, which at approximately 14.5 million, is roughly the size of Illinois and New Mexico combined. In fact, Ontario will become the second largest jurisdiction by populations for online sports betting in North America, behind only New York.

In August 2021, ProLine began accepting single game sports bets at brick & mortar and online locations across Ontario via the ProLine+ platform. Although it received de facto automatic approval, its long-held monopoly will vanish as the first Ontario online betting sites go live on April 4. Several household brands that have procured the requisite licenses will enter the mix, and this will create a robust ecosystem of sports betting options in Ontario.

So without further ado, here are the publicly-listed companies which have obtained licenses and stand to benefit as their wholly-operated sportsbook brands open up shop in Ontario on April 4.

DraftKings 

DKNG  is one of the most recognized sportsbooks in North America. According to their most recent financial results, the company reported revenue of $473 million in the fourth quarter of 2021. Furthermore, Monthly Unique Payers in DraftKings B2C segment increased 32% compared year-over-year. On average, 2 million monthly unique paying customers engaged with DraftKings during each month in Q4 2021. 

Penn National Gaming (theScore, Pointsbet)

NASDAQ:PENN stands as a material winner among public companies when single game sports betting goes live in Ontario on April 4. The company earned a whopping $1.6 billion in the Q4 2021 alone—an increase of $545.1 million year-over-year and $231.3 million versus 2019.

The company will be represented through Score Media and Gaming Inc. (theScore), which it purchased for approximately U.S.$2.0 billion in cash and stock last October, and its 6.27% stake in PointsBet Holdings Ltd., which it acquired last October as well.

Flutter Entertainment (FanDuel Sportsbook)

U.K. based Flutter Entertainment FLTR revealed annual earnings recently that were affected by a run of “unprecedented” run of punter-friendly sports results. The group, which also owns the PokerStars and Sky Bet brands, posted a 24% decline in underlying pre-tax profits to £620 million for 2021, despite revenues rising 17% on a constant currency basis to £6 billion.

BetMGM Sportsbook

BetMGM, LLC, which is jointly owned by MGM Resorts International MGM and Entain Plc ENT, is one of the leading sports betting and iGaming operators across the U.S. Performance in 2021 was five times greater than the previous year, with net gaming revenue improving to around $850m. Same state revenues were up around 140% year-over-year.

Caesars Sportsbook

Caesars Entertainment CZR is a massive entertainment conglomerate and one of the world’s most diversified casino-entertainment providers. In Q4 2021, Caesar’s reported GAAP net revenues of $2.6 billion versus $1.6 billion for the comparable prior-year period. For the full year, GAAP net revenues of $9.6 billion versus $3.6 billion for the comparable prior-year period. 

Caesars Sportsbook is currently live in 22 states and jurisdictions, 16 of which offer mobile wagering.

Rush Street Interactive (Betrivers.com)

Rush Street Interactive NYSE:RSI recently announced Q4 2021 results which slightly missed the 9-analyst estimate on the topline. Revenue was $130.6 million, which represented an increase of 31% compared to $100.0 million during the fourth quarter of 2020. For full year 2021, revenue was $488.1 million during full year 2021—an increase of 75%, compared to $278.5 million during full year 2020.

Real-money Monthly Active Users, or MAUs, in the United States in Q4 2021 were up 28% year-over-year while average revenue per MAU of $327 during the fourth quarter of 2021

Rivalry

On October 28, 2021, Rivalry Corp. RVLY submitted an application to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) to operate in Toronto and the province of Ontario. Its registration was approved by the AGCO three month later and announced on February 4, 2022.

This article was originally published on The Dales Report and appears here with permission.