Ontario’s online gambling sector continues to flourish. Revenue figures for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024-25, released today by iGaming Ontario, show total online gambling revenue of $726 million is up 5.2% over the previous quarter ($690 million) and up 34% over the first quarter of FY 2023-24 ($540 million).
The first quarter (April 1, 2024 – June 30, 2024) was the most successful revenue quarter in the province’s history, total, and also for both online casinos ($529 million) and sports betting ($181 million) since the market opened on April 4, 2022.
About the only negative was that online poker revenue declined from $19 million in Q4 to $16 million in the most recent quarter.
“With 50 regulated operators and a one-third increase in wagering and revenue figures over the first quarter of last year, Ontarians who choose to gamble are finding many enjoyable options in our open regulated igaming market,” said Martha Otton, Executive Director of iGaming Ontario, in a release.
“The revenue generated by Ontario’s competitive igaming market contributes directly to provincial priorities such as infrastructure, healthcare, and education.”
Ontario took in $145.2 million in tax revenue in Q1
Ontario’s tax rate on online gambling is 20%. That means the province took in some $145.2 million in tax revenue from the sector in the first quarter.
Lifetime, the sector is already closing in on $1 billion in tax revenue. Since April of 2022, online gambling has delivered $911.8 million.
Ontario tax revenue from the sector by quarter are as follows:
- Q1 2022-23 — $32.4 million
- Q2 2022-23 — $53.4 million
- Q3 2022-23 — $91.4 million
- Q4 2022-23 — $102.8 million
- Q1 2023-24 — $109 million
- Q2 2023-24 — $108 million
- Q3 2023-24 — $131.6 million
- Q4 2023-24 — $138 million
- Q1 2024-25 — $145.2 million
Ontario sector supports 50 gambling operators, 15,000 jobs, $1.24 billion in tax revenue
Ontario’s open market — home to 50 operators and 80 separate gambling sites — has been wildly successful by most measures.
A PlayCanada analysis found that in its first two years of operation, Ontario was the number one jurisdiction in North America when compared to the first two years of comparable states Pennsylvania, Michigan and New Jersey.
A Deloitte study also found that, in its second full year, Ontario’s online gambling sector supported nearly 15,000 full-time equivalent jobs in the province and delivering some $1.24 billion in combined tax revenue to provincial, federal and municipal governments.
Online casino Q1 revenue of $529 million is 73% of total
Online casinos thoroughly dominate the Ontario market accounting for 84% of total online bets and 73% of total online gambling revenue of $726 million.
In the first quarter, total online betting handle of $18.4 billion, which does not include promotional wagers (bonuses), is up 3.4% over last quarter ($17.8 billion) and a 31% increase over Q1 of last year ($14 billion).
That handle broke down as follows in Q1:
- Online casinos (including slots, live and computer-based table games and peer-to-peer bingo) — $15.5 billion.
- Sports betting (including on sports, esports, proposition and novelty bets, as well as exchange betting) — $2.5 billion
- Online poker — $402 million.
Revenue figures do not include the OLG, which commands a large part of the market
It’s important to note a few things about Ontario’s numbers here.
iGaming Ontario figures do not include revenue from the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s online gambling operations, which command a significant percentage of the sector. In year one, the OLG’s online gambling revenue represented about 24% of the total Ontario market. The OLG reports its figures separately later in the year.
Also, a disclaimer, iGO revenue figures represent “total cash wagers, including rake fees, tournament fees, and other fees, across all Operators, minus player winnings derived from cash wagers and does not take into account operating costs or other liabilities.”
iGO reports 1.9 million active player accounts in Q1
The iGO press release also reports that “nearly 1.9 million player accounts were active during Q1.” iGO defines active player accounts as “accounts with cash and/or promotional wagering activity during the time period.” The number does not “represent unique players as individuals may have accounts with multiple operators.”
The average monthly spend in Q1 per active player account was $284.
