Competition in Ontario sports betting market expected to ramp up further, says expert

It's been a competitive start for Ontario's fledgling sports-betting market, but Greg Warren is anticipating that to ramp up shortly.

The industry opened up fully in Ontario on April 4 and as of Tuesday there were 13 operators and 21 sites live in the province. But Warren, who covers sports betting in this country for Sportshandle.com and USBets.com, says more competition is likely on its way.

"Everybody is waiting for DraftKings to come to Ontario," Warren said during an interview. "They're not licensed with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario yet ... but everyone is kind of expecting them to jump into the market soon.

Ditto, Warren says, for BetWay, an online gambling company that holds licenses in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Italy, German and six American states, to name a few.

"There was data from Morgan Stanley that suggested they had a large share of the [Ontario] market in the last year because they were operating as a grey operator," Warren said. "They should be here in the next month and they're expected to really do well also."

Another operator expected to launch soon in Ontario is Bet99, which signed Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews as an ambassador in February. Matthews, who has scored a club-record 60 goals this season, will lead the Leafs into the NHL playoffs.

The start of the NHL post-season could also be a boon for both PointsBet and FanDuel, two licensed Ontario operators that both have partnerships with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which owns both the Leafs and NBA's Toronto Raptors. After dropping the first three games of their opening-round playoff series against Philadelphia, the Raptors have won two straight heading into Thursday night's home game at Scotiabank Arena.