Description

“The launch of the iGaming market in Ontario has been a resounding success, both bringing new business and breathing new life into the gambling landscape in the province, while also encouraging existing players – like casinos and OLG – to innovate and adapt. While other provinces are still hesitant to follow suit for myriad reasons, the addition of commercial sportsbooks has been nothing but a boon to Ontario’s gaming market.”

– Michael Lloy, Senior Tech & Media Analyst

Key issues covered in this Report

  • What have consumers gambled on? How often have they gambled?
  • What motivations and barriers to gambling do consumers experience?
  • Where have consumers seen sportsbook ads since the launch of the iGaming market?

Table of Contents

  1. Overview

    • What you need to know
      • Key issues covered in this Report
      • Executive Summary

          • Top takeaways
            • Consumer trends
              • Consumers playing free-to-play gambling video games are an excellent niche for brands to target
                • Figure 1: Participation in betting, “I play gambling-style video games without betting money” (% any agree) vs overall, 2022
              • Sports gambling frequency has increased over the past twelve months
                • Figure 2: Sports gambling frequency, 2023 vs 2022
              • Consumers are sick of seeing sports gambling ads
                • Figure 3: Sports betting advertising attitudes, 2022
              • Competitive strategies
                • Traditional casinos are embracing online gambling
                  • Figure 4: Fallsview Social Instagram post, November 2022
                • Challenges face other provinces hoping to follow Ontario
                  • Sportsbooks leverage start power to build their brands in the iGaming market
                    • Figure 5: Jamie Foxx Instagram Post, February 2021
                  • Market Predictions
                    • While Canadians have been severely impacted by rising prices, CPI deceleration makes the future look promising
                      • Inflation poised to drain the purchasing power of Canadian households
                        • The iGaming market has resulted in massive growth for Ontario’s gaming industry
                          • The launch of the iGaming market initiates massive growth in the Canadian gaming industry
                            • Figure 6: Category outlook, gambling, 2023-28
                          • Opportunities
                            • Casinos and sportsbooks need to work on reaching and converting non-betters
                              • Brands can leverage AI to put the power back into users’ hands
                              • The Market – By the Numbers

                                • The launch of the iGaming Market in Ontario has been explosive
                                  • Figure 7: iGaming fiscal results, Q1 – Q3, 2022
                              • Market Factors

                                • February 2023 sees massive inflation deceleration
                                  • While Canadians have been severely impacted by rising prices, CPI deceleration makes the future look promising
                                    • Figure 8: Canadian Consumer Price Index, 2020-23
                                  • Household savings have risen slightly from a 5% plateau
                                    • Figure 9: Canadian household savings rate, Q1 2019-Q4, 2022
                                  • Canada’s aging population will likely put pressure on younger Canadians
                                    • Figure 10: Canadian population age projections, yearly, 2000-40
                                  • Diversity among future generations is projected to increase
                                    • Figure 11: Proportion of visible minority in Canada, 1981-2040
                                • Competitive Strategies

                                  • Land-based casinos adopt online gaming instead of fighting against it
                                      • Figure 12: Fallsview Casino Social Instagram post, 2022
                                    • Challenges face other provinces hoping to follow Ontario
                                      • Sportsbooks are using star power to make a splash
                                        • Figure 13: Jamie Foxx Instagram Post, 2021
                                      • The growing role of AI and emerging technologies in commercial sports betting
                                        • Figure 14: Lucky Block Instagram Post, 2023
                                    • Fast Facts: Gambling

                                      • Gambling Participation

                                        • Just over two thirds of Canadian consumers have participated in some form of gambling
                                            • Figure 15: Participation in betting, 2022
                                          • Men are more likely to have engaged in most forms of betting, but opportunities exist to get women involved
                                            • Figure 16: Participation in betting, men vs women, 2022
                                          • Age plays a significant part in how consumers have engaged with gambling
                                            • Figure 17: Participation in casino-style gambling, by age, 2022
                                            • Figure 18: Participation in sports betting, by age, 2022
                                            • Figure 19: Other gambling/betting participation, by age, 2022
                                          • Asian Canadians betting history showcases vastly different gambling habits
                                            • Figure 20: Participation in betting (select), Chinese and South Asian consumers vs overall, 2022
                                          • There is an opportunity to convert free-to-play gambling video game players to betters
                                            • Figure 21: Participation in betting, “I play gambling-style video games without betting money” (% any agree) vs overall, 2022
                                          • Mirroring the gambling population, the vast majority of free gambling video-gamers are men under the age of 54
                                            • Figure 22: “I play gambling-style video games without betting money” (% any agree), by age and gender, 2022
                                        • Gambling Frequency

                                          • Half of gamblers place bets at least several times per month
                                            • Figure 23: Betting frequency, 2022
                                          • Men are more avid betters than women
                                            • Figure 24: Betting frequency, men vs women, 2022
                                            • Figure 25: Gamble daily, by age and gender, 2022
                                          • Frequent betting can engender higher brand loyalty
                                            • Figure 26: Gambling loyalty, men vs women, 2022
                                          • Men aged 35-44 have the highest brand loyalty to frequently-used casinos and sportsbooks
                                            • Figure 27: Gambling loyalty (% any agree), by age and gender, 2022
                                        • Gambling Motivations

                                          • Aside from winning money, consumers enjoy the experience and social aspects of gambling
                                            • Figure 28: Reasons for gambling, 2022
                                          • Men are significantly more likely to enjoy the intricacies of gambling while spending their free time and money on betting
                                            • Figure 29: Reasons for gambling, men vs women, 2022
                                            • Figure 30: Fallsview Casino Facebook post, 2022
                                          • Social gambling is a significant motivator for younger women
                                            • Figure 31: Social gambling, by age and gender, 2022
                                            • Figure 32: Fallsview Casino Facebook post, 2022
                                          • Younger consumers are more open to trying something new
                                            • Figure 33: “I want to try something new” as a reason for gambling, by age, 2022
                                          • Gambling incentives are important to a large niche of consumers
                                            • Figure 34: Gambling incentive attitudes, 2022
                                        • Gambling Barriers

                                          • Both a lack of interest and fear of losing money are keeping consumers away from betting
                                            • Figure 35: Reasons for not gambling, 2022
                                          • Lack of interest among older consumers is a large barrier for gamblers and sportsbooks
                                            • Figure 36: Uninterested in gambling, by age, 2022
                                          • Younger consumers were significantly more likely to feel that casino games were unfair
                                            • Figure 37: Casino games are rigged, by age, 2022
                                          • The morality and ethics of gambling are a concern for many Canadians
                                            • Figure 38: Attitudes around the morality and ethics of gambling, 2022
                                          • Frequent gamblers are significantly more concerned about the ethics of their hobby
                                            • Figure 39: “I have concerns about the morality and ethics of gambling” (% any agree), by age and gender, 2022
                                          • Women typically have stronger feelings about animal racing than men
                                            • Figure 40: “I believe racing animals is animal cruelty” (% any agree), by age and gender, 2022
                                          • Religion may play a part in associations of immorality and gambling, but changing generational mores may provide an opportunity for betting brands
                                          • Sports Betting: One Year Later

                                            • Daily sports betting has increased significantly
                                              • Figure 41: Sports betting frequency, 2023 vs 2022
                                            • Men are driving frequent sports betting, with men aged 35-44 driving daily bets
                                              • Figure 42: Sports betting frequency, by gender
                                            • Consumers are betting on a wider variety of sports in 2023
                                              • Figure 43: Sports bet on in the past 12 months, 2023 vs 2022
                                            • Younger consumers are driving basketball and soccer betting
                                              • Figure 44: Sports bet on in the past 12 months, by age, 2022
                                            • Consumers are planning to gamble, and sportsbooks need to help them execute on those plans
                                              • Figure 45: Sports planned to bet on in the next 12 months, 2022
                                            • Younger men are driving plans to gamble over the next twelve months
                                              • Figure 46: Sports planned to bet on in the next 12 months, men by age, 2022
                                            • Despite changing demographics, staple sports remain staples
                                              • Figure 47: Sports planned to bet on in the next 12 months, by race, 2022
                                            • Knowledge of sports betting terms and lingo remains low
                                              • Figure 48: “I am familiar with most sports betting terms”, 2023 vs 2022
                                          • Sports Betting: Ads and Attitudes

                                            • Nearly two thirds of Canadians have experienced a sports betting ad over the past nine months
                                              • Figure 49: Sports gambling ads experienced in the past 9 months, 2022
                                            • Men were significantly more likely to have experienced every type of sports gambling ad
                                              • Figure 50: Sports gambling ads experienced in the past 9 months, men vs women, 2022
                                            • Age plays an important role in which ads are being experienced
                                              • Figure 51: Sports gambling ads experienced in the past 9 months, by age, 2022
                                            • Celebrity faces aren’t making consumers want to see more sportsbook ads…
                                              • Figure 52: Sports betting advertising attitudes, 2022
                                            • Still, among frequent betters the ads seem to be working
                                              • Figure 53: Sports betting advertising attitudes, by those who bet on sports at least once per week, 2022
                                          • Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations

                                            • Data sources
                                              • Consumer survey data
                                                • Consumer qualitative research
                                                  • Abbreviations and terms
                                                    • Abbreviations
                                                      • Terms

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