Ontario and Alberta may be on the verge of doing something that has already reshaped online gambling in parts of the US. That is, putting players from separate regulated markets into the same games.
The idea is gaining traction as both provinces explore shared player pools for products such as online poker and daily fantasy sports. A ruling from the Supreme Court of Canada could decide whether that future is actually possible.
The court is scheduled to hear the case on October 7, after several parties challenged a 2025 Ontario Court of Appeal decision that backed the province’s ability to connect its players with people outside Ontario.
The United States’ Version of the Idea
American gambling operators have spent years dealing with a patchwork of state laws, but interstate agreements have helped solve liquidity, which is often one of the biggest problems that arise from it.
Online poker is a good example. States that join multi-state agreements can combine their player bases, creating larger games, bigger prize pools and a market that is more attractive to operators and customers. Ontario and Alberta could potentially take a similar route.
Ontario launched its regulated commercial iGaming market in 2022, while Alberta only entered the space in 2026. Most other Canadian provinces still rely on government-run gambling platforms, leaving the two commercial markets relatively self-contained. Pooling players would change that, particularly for games that depend on having enough participants at any given time.
Ontario and Alberta Want the Door Open
Officials in both provinces have already shown interest in linking their markets. Alberta’s gambling leadership has backed the concept from both a commercial and business perspective, while Ontario has indicated that shared liquidity could become an important part of its future strategy. Discussions over a potential agreement between the provinces have also been underway.
A combined market could give dual-licensed operators access to a much larger customer pool without either province having to build a fully national iGaming system. That prospect is one reason Alberta has joined Ontario in supporting the legal argument before Canada’s highest court.
Supreme Court to Decide How Far Provincial Borders Reach
The dispute primarily centres on Canada’s Criminal Code. Ontario’s Court of Appeal ruled 4-1 that the province could allow its regulated peer-to-peer games to include players located elsewhere, provided Ontario continued to control and regulate the gambling activity offered to its own customers.
Provincial lottery corporations from British Columbia, Manitoba and the Atlantic provinces challenged that decision, later joined by Loto-Quebec. They argue that allowing cross-border participation would effectively mean Ontario was conducting gambling outside its borders.
Ontario, Alberta and industry groups including the Canadian Gaming Association, Flutter Entertainment and NSUS Group support the opposite interpretation. The October 7 hearing could therefore have consequences well beyond one provincial dispute. A ruling in Ontario’s favour could give Canada a path towards the kind of interconnected online gambling markets already emerging in the US.
The question now is whether Canada is ready to let its provincial borders become less important to online betting.