91% of Ontario players choose licensed gambling sites, survey finds
A new Ipsos survey commissioned by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and iGaming Ontario (iGO) shows that 91.1 per cent of players in the province now prefer licensed gambling sites, up 7.4 percentage points on the prior year. The share of players gambling exclusively on unlicensed platforms has nearly halved, falling from 16.3 per cent in 2025 to 8.9 per cent.
The survey was conducted between 30 March and 20 April 2026 among 2,012 Ontario residents aged 19 and over. The results reflect a steady increase in confidence in the regulated market since its launch in April 2022. Prior to the market’s launch, the government estimated that approximately 70 per cent of online gambling in the province occurred on unlicensed sites.
Regulator and government response
Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey said the province “has become an international leader in building a safe, competitive and regulated online gambling market.” He added that the shift to a licensed market had not only protected players but also supported jobs, driven innovation and generated government revenue.
Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming Stan Cho said the growing share of players choosing regulated sites confirmed the province was on the right track. “We are prioritising the rollout of responsible gambling tools and ensuring players have the strongest possible protections,” he said.
AGCO Chief Executive Karin Schnarr welcomed the survey results, pointing to the effectiveness of the province’s regulatory model. “We will continue to go after the remaining illegal market and hold all licensed operators to strict standards,” she said.
iGO President Joseph Hillier said the figures demonstrated the balance that Ontario had struck between player choice and consumer protection. “iGO is dedicated to its mission of creating a secure and sustainable environment for players and operators alike,” Hillier said.
Enforcement against the unlicensed market
Since the regulated market launched, Ontario authorities have moved actively against unlicensed operators. The AGCO uses Ipsos survey data on an ongoing basis to identify and block such platforms, while also stepping up compliance oversight covering advertising, age restrictions and responsible gambling measures.
The survey also found that most respondents who gambled online during the three months preceding the survey used regulated sites. The number of people playing only on unlicensed platforms went down to its lowest level since tracking began.
In April, iGO formally introduced its new Centralised Self-Exclusion (CSE) system. The BetGuard service took approximately one year to develop and was built in partnership with Integrity Compliance 360 and Dataworks (formerly IXUP). A public launch is expected in the near future.
Challenges and the road ahead
Experts say that completely eliminating the unlicensed market is not realistic in the short term. Some players continue to use these sites because of higher bonuses or the absence of betting limits. But the number of these users is declining every year as people place more trust in the regulated market.
Ontario’s government and regulators plan to continue educating the public about the advantages of licensed platforms, with particular focus on young people and at-risk groups. Technical enforcement against unlicensed operators, including site blocking and monitoring of social media advertising, is also set to continue.
Over the past four years, the province has built a competitive market while significantly reducing unlicensed gambling, benefiting both player protection and the regional economy.
This article was first published in Russian on 29 May 2026.
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