Alberta Sets July 13 Start for Regulated Online Gambling Market

Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally sent a letter to stakeholders on Monday informing them that the province's regulated online gambling market will launch on July 13. The move aims to shift the majority of gambling activity away from unregulated operators into a provincially overseen and taxed system.

Sign on the dotted line

Again, that's according to what was written by Nally, the province's de facto iGaming minister, in his letter to stakeholders. Covers has reviewed a copy of that letter, which was first reported by Gaming News Canada.

The letter noted there is still work to be done before the competitive iGaming market goes live. The minister said that the provincial government had heard that many operators needed additional time to prepare for the various responsibilities and requirements of that new market.

Nally added that the new Alberta iGaming Corp., with which operators will sign contracts outlining their obligations and authorizing them to take bets, continues to work with companies on the draft operating agreement. The finalized contract will be available by mid-April, the letter suggested. "Alberta's future in iGaming is bright, and, with your partnership, we will ensure it is a success for everyone," Nally wrote.

July 13 will now be a big day for both iGaming in Alberta and Canada.

Ontario is still the only province that permits multiple private-sector operators of online sportsbooks and casino sites to take bets within its borders. Alberta will become the second to adopt such a model, breaking from the majority of other provinces that grant legal iGaming monopolies to government-owned lotteries.

However, just because a province doesn't authorize private-sector competition, it doesn't mean it's not there. Alberta's government says that around 70% of online gambling there happens with so-called "grey" or "black" market operators. These are companies that may be licensed and regulated abroad or outside the province, but not by the province itself.

In other words, there are already operators taking bets in Alberta without any authorization from the provincial government. That "unregulated" activity is the main reason why Alberta wants to launch a competitive iGaming market.

By offering operators a way to come under provincial oversight and taxation, the provincial government hopes to channel that unregulated activity into provincially regulated channels. Since the launch of its iGaming market in 2022, Ontario now estimates that more than 80% of iGaming occurs with provincially regulated operators.

Get right or get out

The AGLC notified interested operators earlier this month that they have until July 13 to cease any "unregulated" activity and pay their licensing fees.

The regulator said extensions of up to three months from that date could be granted, until Oct. 13, but only for operators that could "demonstrate a path to compliance for market launch that was unattainable prior to July 13, 2026."

Nevertheless, the AGLC added that failures to heed its warnings could "result in a finding of unsuitability for iGaming registration in Alberta."

The "transition" guidance won't apply to all operators in Alberta's iGaming market, though.

There will be formerly "grey" operators joining, yes, but there will also be operators starting from scratch in the Western Canadian province. Some of those operators, such as theScore Bet and Caesars, have been approved to begin pre-registering customers. However, no deposits or bets are allowed until July 13.

But the bottom line is that when the new iGaming market does go live, it will bring the number of provincially regulated iGaming sites in Alberta from one, the AGLC’s Play Alberta, to many, including big-name brands such as bet365, DraftKings, and FanDuel.

The AGLC has said that more than 50 operator sites have voiced interest in joining the regulated market.