Each week, Canada Sports Betting recaps all the top sports betting and iGaming news in Canada, highlights the event of the week, and takes a look ahead at some of the most intriguing games to bet on over the weekend.
Our top stories this week
- What Comes Next In The Mohawk Council Of Kahnawà:ke’s Lawsuit Against The Ontario Government?
- 2022 NFL Predictions – Against The Spread: Week 16
- Bet99 Signs Multi-Year Canadian Partnership With NHL
- Three Christmas Wishes From Canadian Sports Bettors
Events of the week
NFL Week 16
Mother Nature is wreaking havoc on Week 16 betting lines in the NFL as a major winter storm is set to bear down on the Northeastern United States this weekend.
The NFL’s schedule is wonky this week as Christmas Day lands on a Sunday, so 11 games had been moved up to Saturday (Christmas Eve) and are now in the path of what some meteorologists are calling a “once-in-a-generation storm” this weekend.
As a result of the impending weather, totals lines have been plummeting all week since they opened, much like the expected temperatures as the weather event rolls in. The storm is expected to produce blizzard-like conditions with winds exceeding 100 km/h in some major U.S. cities.
Even Thursday night’s total for the contest between the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets has fallen from 41 to 37.5 at some sportsbooks due to expected high winds and soaking rain in New York ahead of the major weather system. In fact, NFL Week 16 totals are falling at historic rates.
SportsGrid to launch Canadian channel next year
SportsGrid will be launching a Canadian FAST channel in mid-February with original sports programming and real-time wagering data.
Viewers will be able to use their connected TV devices or smart TVs to access the streaming SportsGrid Network in Canada.
“SportsGrid’s launch in Canada is an important day for our company to expand our overall global streaming ecosystem and regional coverage of sports wagering,” said Jason Sukhraj, general manager of syndication, in a press release. “SportsGrid Canada will be a differentiated streaming program service providing daily sports betting coverage of Canadian sports with insightful commentary and real-time data visualizations. Canada is an important market for SportsGrid as the rapidly growing sports betting audience is shifting to streaming providing tremendous opportunities for advertisers to connect with the adult 18-34 demographic.”
SportsGrid is a multimedia technology platform providing innovative digital solutions for the convergence of sports content, gaming, and mobile technology.
Vancouver Warriors partner with BCLC
The National Lacrosse League’s Vancouver Warriors announced a partnership last Thursday with the British Columbia Lottery Corporation’s PlayNow online sports betting platform.
PlayNow is sponsoring a Predict the Play online trivia contest on game days and the agreement also includes a sponsored PlayNow Party Zone seating area between sections 109-114 (behind the net) at Rogers Arena.
BCLC’s PlayNow is also an official sports betting partner of the Vancouver Canucks, who also play at Rogers Arena.
The news dropped just prior to the Warriors’ home opener on Dec. 16 against Calgary.
Rivalry’s esports report
Rivalry, a Toronto-based esports-focused betting technology company released a year-end report this week highlighting some of the interesting trends on its platforms from the past year.
The report includes data on some of the most bet-on games, matches, teams, trends, and storylines to watch heading into 2023.
Some interesting findings from the report include:
- Some of the most wagered on esports titles are: League of Legends, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota2, Valorant, and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. Valorant, in particular, saw a 264% annual increase in volume.
- Basketball is the most popular sport among esports bettors on the Rivalry platform. More than half of people who bet on esports in 2022 also bet on traditional sports.
- Roughly 82% of Rivalry’s users are under the age of 30.
- Approximately 90% of Rivalry’s total betting handle this year is on esports.
Rivalry, which also offers a comprehensive sports betting platform, was one of the first operators to launch in Ontario‘s regulated iGaming market on April 4. The company also has plans to expand its iCasino platform into Ontario next year.
ALC extends partnership with Scientific Games
The Atlantic Lottery Corporation has awarded Scientific Games a five-year contract extension to serve as its primary instant game partner, the provincial crown corporation that manages lottery, online gaming, and sports betting in the provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island, announced on Monday.
ALC can extend the existing partnership for up to an additional five years, should it desire to.
The corporation’s Scratch’N Win products from Scientific Games topped the previous year’s sales by 9.8%, according to the press release.
In addition to Scratch’N Win games, Scientific Games supplies and operates ALC’s integrated central gaming and iLottery system that serves draw, instant-win, sports betting, iCasino, and digital instant game content across its retail and digital channels.
PlayAlberta adds to iCasino offerings
PlayAlberta, the only regulated online gambling website that is offered to Albertans through the Alberta Liquor, Liquor & Cannabis Commission, is adding to its iCasino platform.
Pariplay, though American Gaming Systems, will be bolstering PlayAlberta’s platform with popular iCasino games, such as Capital Gains, Tiger Lord, and Golden Wins. Pariplay’s Fusion offering consists of over 14,000 games from 80-plus suppliers.
“AGS has developed a deserved reputation for creating highly entertaining slots that capture the attention of players both in land-based and digital gaming environments,” said Adrian Bailey, managing director at Pariplay, in a press release. “To take its content live in Alberta through PlayAlberta.ca is a great moment and a first step in our important mission of delivering the widest range of third-party content to operators and their players in the province. We look forward to seeing how players react to a portfolio packed with engaging and innovative games.”
