Can a Senate bill to regulate sports betting ads reach the finish line in this Parliament?

A senator's push to curtail the unchecked promotion of sports betting is working its way through the legislative process, with the aim of establishing a national framework for regulating these services.

In broad strokes, the legislation would require Ottawa to set limits on advertising — including possible measures to curb how much of it reaches Canadians — and also national standards for preventing problem gambling. But with an election on the horizon, it still has a long way to go before reaching the finish line. 

"It's a long haul," said Senator Marty Deacon, who introduced Bill S-269, which recently passed second reading in the Senate — its text unchanged from first reading.

Canada legalized single-event sports betting in 2021. That effort gave provinces the green light to develop private markets for these services, but so far, only Ontario has taken that step.

Yet the shift to legalization led to a deluge of gambling-related advertising, with one CBC investigation finding that gambling messages filled up to 21 per cent of each broadcast, on average. That flood of marketing has irked some sports fans and it's among the factors prompting Deacon to get the ball rolling on regulating the ads.

Deacon, a member of the Independent Senators Group, said the push to legalize gambling took several attempts to become a reality, playing out across the span of multiple Parliaments. But that legislation didn't address the advertising blitz that has ensued, which Deacon believes must be reined in.

She and other critics have raised concerns over its impact on youth, and also on those who might develop issues with problem gambling.

Brian Masse, a New Democrat MP who advocated for the legalization of sports betting, said it would have been preferable to have "a more comprehensive approach to this from the get-go," but he approves of the Senate's efforts to deal with the issue.

Ontario launched its regulated market for sports betting and online gambling in April 2022.

Today, Ontarians are placing billions of dollars in wagers each year — via poker and casino sites, as well as sports betting. 

Sports betting represents only a fraction of these wagers, but this segment of the gambling industry has nonetheless drawn a lot of media scrutiny — the advertising push, in particular, for its intensity and its presence in markets where the advertised services aren't regulated.

But Ontario has made adjustments to its regulations since the launch of the legal market — and that has included putting restrictions on how gambling firms can advertise their services. 

Initially, athletes past and present, including Wayne Gretzky, Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews, appeared in ads promoting online gambling. But the provincial regulator concluded their presence in ads posed a risk to those under the legal gaming age and eventually banned athletes — as well as other celebrities and influencers. 

Despite Ontario tightening its regulations, McDavid is still appearing in ads for BetMGM. But in the new spots, the hockey superstar is shown advocating for responsible gambling. Deacon recently told a Senate committee that exceptions like these amount to "a truck-sized loophole" in the regulations.