A year after Ontario’s online gambling and sports betting markets were introduced, many people were surprised that the NBA was the most betting sport instead of hockey. However, recent reports confirmed this even more as local sports betting companies bet more on the NBA than on the Stanley Cup Final. But this may be because there is no Canadian team in it.
In the first year of iGaming, Ontario saw most of its online bets go to the NBA, accounting for 29% of all bets. Soccer came in second with 15 percent of handles, followed by soccer with 13 percent. Hockey ranked fourth with 9% of all bets. This was applied for the period from April 4, 2022 to March 31, 2023.
There is no official data released from iGaming Ontario yet, but the trend of NBA dominating bettors’ choices seems to continue in the Stanley Cup final, which features the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights. Currently, bets on the NHL Championship Series are about 20% behind the volume put into the NBA Finals, said Phil Gray, head of trading operations for Canada’s bookmaker.
This betting activity could come as some bad news for NHL leaders who relied on regulated sports betting to energize the league. Like many other professional leagues, the NHL hoped that betting would be a way to attract more fans to its brand because there are not many things that keep them watching sports games, such as betting.
However, it should be noted that NHL betting volume among players is still higher in Ontario than in most states and states. Not long ago, BetMGM said the state is the No. 1 betting market in the NHL and ahead of Michigan and Massachusetts. The operator also said bets on the Stanley Cup Playoffs in Ontario have increased every year.
But one sports book had serious bets on better NHL games than the NBA. Last month, FanDuel reported that the victory for the Toronto Maple Leafs Game 6 and Tampa Bay Lightning was a favorite event for active users that night, with the trend resuming through Game 3 of the Toronto series against Florida.
But as sports betting grows in popularity, gambling experts are concerned and warning about possible match-fixing in the region. Professor Richard McLaren noted that the issue was still in its early stages and said the area should be prepared for possible match fixing. This is because there is no exact law to deal with this behavior.
In addition, the local i-gaming market has also been the subject of scrutiny, causing an influx of sports betting ads during games. That’s why John Frazier, interim leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, has tabled a motion in the local council urging local governments to implement a new approach that would allow them to examine the dangers of local-wide hype.
BY: 파친코