Share 
Canada’s senate passed Bill C-218, which all but guarantees sports betting reform will pass in Canada. All that’s left is for the Governor General to give the bill a Royal Assent. After that, the bill becomes law. Once it’s law, single-event wagering will be legal in Canada. Instead of being stuck with parlay bets, bettors will be able to place moneylines, point spreads, point totals, and many other types of wagers. It’ll create a sports betting environment that mirrors the United State’s most competitive markets.
“The forthcoming legalization of single-event sports betting presents a substantial growth opportunity for our integrated media and betting business,” said theScore Chairman and CEO, John Levy.
“theScore is Canada’s leading digital sports media brand and we are eager to bring our award-winning mobile sportsbook, theScore Bet, to fans on our home turf. We have been actively preparing for the expansion of online sports betting and iGaming in our home province of Ontario, which is expected to commence later this year, and we are very favorably positioned to succeed given our mobile betting experience and vast active user base. Further, we are excited to broaden our relationship with the millions of loyal fans who already know, trust, and engage with theScore app across Canada.”
Canadian sports betting operator, theScore Bet, has built a strong foothold in the United States. When the Canadian market opens up, it’ll likely build a strong market presence there too. Bill C-218’s passage will mark a critical milestone in theScore Bet’s lifetime.
Bill C-218’s Implications For theScore Bet
theScore Bet is expanding to new U.S. markets as they open up. But a few things will happen to theScore Bet’s business when Canadian sports betting becomes fair game, too.
First, analysts should expect to see a higher cash burn accompanying revenue growth. As theScore rapidly expands, it’ll generate new revenue in new markets. So, revenue will increase. But startup costs, like license fees, will burn large amounts of cash. theScore Bet is large enough that it won’t go out of business from expanding quickly. Its investment cash flows will probably be negative while it’s taking advantage of the new markets opening.
Those effects will be temporary, too. As theScore Bet’s growth plateaus, its growth will return to a slow steady rate. It may seem obvious now. But the op-eds in three years fretting over its slowing growth will forget about all the new markets that opened up in 2021.
H3Access To Northern States Without Sports Betting
Canada’s sports betting bill has been a looming specter for northern states. Northern states with sports betting aren’t looking forward to new competitors. But northern states without sports betting could see its northernmost bettors crossing the border to bet at Canadian sportsbooks. Market pressure could drive northern states to legalize sports betting.
Even if northern states choose not to legalize sports betting, Canada’s revitalized sports betting industry could get some American bettors out of the black market. This will likely only be true for Americans who live on Canada’s border. But with safe sports betting options available, Americans in northern states without sports betting may switch to licensed Canadian sportsbooks.
Canadian sports betting could also pressure northern states to find ways to make their sports betting industries more competitive. Even sports betting generates modest profits for the state, having an uncompetitive sports betting industry looks bad. That image problem could be enough to become a political liability for candidates who need to seem friendly to business.
Whatever happens, theScore will be there to ride the waves of these trends and continue expanding.
