Canadian high court balks at Ontario international gambling bid

The Supreme Court of Canada appeared skeptical of Ontario opening its online gambling platform to international players.MONTREAL (CN) — The Supreme Court of Canada on Wednesday scrutinized Ontario’s proposed international gambling system, which rolls the dice by allowing residents to wager against users abroad.The Atlantic Lottery Corporation represents a coalition of Canadian lotteries and provinces fighting iGaming Ontario, arguing the platform — which features international betting companies — would encroach on their clients’ market.Ontario launched iGaming Ontario in 2022 as an online gambling market with licensed private operators for internet games and sports betting, intending to regulate and generate revenue from an industry that was already operating illegally. Ontario was the first and only province to allow such a platform before Alberta followed suit this summer. The other provinces only allow online gambling through their government-owned websites.Ontario then sought to expand the platform in 2025 to allow residents to “pool liquidity” with international players for games such as poker and fantasy leagues, as opposed to the current model of “closed liquidity” where money stays within the province. Before this new initiative, companies who wanted to use iGaming Ontario needed to ensure the players using their games were located in Ontario. The attorney general of Ontario asked the province’s Court of Appeal to stipulate whether this new model would be legal.Canadian law allows regional governments to run gambling operations in accordance with local regulations, but it doesn’t mention any rules for international gambling. In November 2025, the Ontario Court of Appeal declared the new market lawful because the federal provision sought to grant provinces the freedom to regulate their own lotteries.“The decision relied on a lack of express prohibition of international play in section 207(1)(a), and with respect, this is backwards,” Atlantic Lottery Corporation attorney Matthew Milne-Smith told Canada’s highest court. Since gambling is illegal in Canada, “everything that is not expressly permitted is prohibited, and both the text and the history of the relevant provisions support this conclusion.”“It looks like it was done back-to-front when you read the majority’s reasons,” agreed Justice Mahmud Jamal.In the Court of Appeal ruling, Justice Katherine van Rensburg dissented, arguing the proposed model is illegal because elements of the gambling operation are not conducted and managed by Ontario.The judges seem to agree with the dissent, as they wondered how exactly Ontario will be able to enforce its regulations with international actors — and if that would run afoul of Canadian law that only allows for governments to run gambling “in that province.”Ontario clarified its approach to international gambling, saying the provincial agency will oversee the platform and therefore follow the law.“We choose who we partner with. We still run the system in this province, and fundamentally we control the experience of people in Ontario, because that’s the concern,” said attorney Ananthan Sinnadurai. “Here, we’re conducting and overseeing the lottery that Ontarians experience.”Ontarians wagered $61.3 billion in 2024-25, generating billions of dollars for the province.Beyond the legal issues raised in court, the iGaming platform has also been criticized by many addiction experts, who were worried about the easy access to gambling. A study released last month revealed emergency room visits for gambling disorders have nearly doubled since iGaming Ontario was launched.Courthouse News reporter Tatiana Mulowayi-Pelletier is based in Montreal, Canada.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads