CALGARY, Alta. - The key number for Alberta's plan to authorize and oversee a small army of online sportsbooks and casino sites isn’t a dollar figure.
It’s a percentage. Specifically, 70%.
That is the amount of online gambling the province wants to see happening with its regulated operators after the first year of the new Alberta sports betting and iGaming market, which is set to launch July 13.
- Alberta plans to launch its regulated online sports betting and iGaming market July 13, with multiple private operators joining Play Alberta.
- The province aims to capture 70% of online gambling in the province via its regulated sites in the first year, and then 75% by the second year.
- Officials say the main goal is stronger oversight and player protection, although the new market is also expected to generate around $76 million in new revenue in Year 1.
In the second year of its regulated iGaming market, the province is shooting for a 75% “channelization rate,” or three-quarters of online wagering flowing through apps and sites that local watchdogs license and oversee.
The 70% figure is particularly interesting because it is also the percentage of online gambling in the province that the Alberta government, citing survey data, says is currently estimated to happen with “unregulated operators,” which is also known as "grey" or "black" market activity.
ICYMI: Another new online sportsbook starts accepting customer signups in Alberta ahead of their expected launch in the province on July 13. You just can't bet... yet:https://t.co/gDtTo81dQa @Covers
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) June 29, 2026
So, in other words, the Alberta government and its gaming regulators are aiming to flip the ratio by July 13, 2027. By then, they want online gambling to go from 70% "unregulated" to 70% regulated, and presumably at minimum.
Put differently, 70% of online gambling in Alberta is currently happening with everyone but the province’s only authorized iGaming site, the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission’s (AGLC) Play Alberta. The province now wants 70% happening with both Play Alberta and its soon-to-launch private-sector competition.
“To ensure as much revenue as possible stays in the province, our goals include a 70% channelization rate after year one, and a 75% channelization rate of the current illegal iGaming market into the regulated Alberta market by year two of operations,” the government-owned Alberta iGaming Corp. (AiGC) says on its website.
The percentage target highlights one of the main reasons why Alberta is licensing and regulating additional iGaming sites. A significant amount of online gambling already takes place in the Western Canadian province, but most of it happens with operators that are not provincially regulated or taxed.
That is set to change on July 13 when Alberta’s new iGaming market is scheduled to open. On that day, multiple private-sector operators will launch within the province’s new regulatory framework, allowing them to take sports bets and offer online casino games with the blessing of the provincial government.
From 70% to, uh, 70% (but good)
This means Alberta is going from one provincially authorized iGaming site, the AGLC’s Play Alberta, to multiple. And, according to the website of the AGLC, which will also act as the regulator of iGaming in the province, there were 47 operators registered with it as of last week.
So, there could be many new and familiar brands joining Alberta’s iGaming market, which is intended to improve the province's channelization rate.
However, registering with the AGLC is just one key step for operators. They must also sign contracts with the AiGC (the so-called "conduct and manage" entity for Alberta's iGaming market) that outline their duties and obligations, including handing over a bit more than 20% of their revenue to the province.
The revenue-sharing mechanism will ensure the provincial government gets a cut of the action. The 20% will also come after 3% of gross revenue is deducted for First Nations and responsible gambling initiatives, hence the “bit more” than 20%.
Enjoying Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account
It's not about the money (there will still be money)
Alberta’s de facto iGaming minister, Dale Nally, recently said the government is anticipating around $76 million in fresh revenue from the first year of its new iGaming market.
Still, as the government continues to stress, the launch of the regulated market is not all about money. Its chief aim is to move unregulated gambling onto provincially regulated sites. And that is where the 70% figure comes in, as the AiGC is setting a clear goal for that channelization rate.
If anything, the 70% goal may be a bit conservative. Alberta is largely following the example of Ontario, which launched a similar iGaming market in 2022 that then withstood a serious legal challenge. And, after one year of competitive iGaming, survey data suggested Ontario’s channelization rate was over 85%.
FWIW the first year of Ontario's competitive iGaming market generated around $87 million for the province. https://t.co/JZjhJKuJ8T
— Geoff Zochodne (@GeoffZochodne) June 30, 2026
Alberta’s regulated market will also feature many of the big-name brands that have come to dominate online gambling in the U.S. and Ontario, including BetMGM, DraftKings, and FanDuel. So, the 70% goal could be one for which operators help the province under-promise and over-deliver.
“The reality is simple: Albertans are already gambling online,” Nally said at a conference in Toronto in May. “The question was never whether online gambling existed. The question was whether it would happen in a regulated environment with strong standards, clear oversight, and meaningful player protections.”
