Alberta’s Grace Period Over, 51 iGaming Sites Officially Registered
Unregulated sites had until Tuesday to join regulated market in Canada’s second legal province
The Canadian province of Alberta launched its regulated iGaming market on July 13 with 18 online casinos approved and operational, but that wasn’t the end of Alberta’s go-live story. Rather, July 13 kicked off a grace period that ended Tuesday — a three-month stretch during which unregulated sites could either make their way into the legal market or face potential enforcement action.
As of that Oct. 13 deadline, 51 online gaming sites were registered and approved by Alberta iGaming Corp. (AiGC), via 30 different companies (many of which are operating multiple brands). Those numbers are not necessarily final; there is no cap on the number of operators allowed in the Alberta market, which is the second legal one in Canada after Ontario.
The AiGC is advising gamblers to look for its logo to distinguish legal gaming sites from those operating without regulation and protections.
The list of licensed sites includes such household names in the U.S. as FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, and Caesars, as well as sites not regulated anywhere in the U.S. such as SpinGenie, Jackpot City, and Casino Classic.
Will it have teeth?
Attention now turns to enforcement mechanisms against sites that are not regulated but continue to take wagers in Alberta.
As Gaming News Canada reported Wednesday, AiGC’s communications team sent a statement that “AGLC will be responsible for monitoring compliance and taking appropriate enforcement action against sites that continue to operate outside of the regulated deadline of October 13, 2026.” The Canadian news outlet also quoted CEO Dan Keene saying, “Alberta’s regulated iGaming market exists to protect Albertans. We look forward to working with operators who have chosen accountability by transitioning away from the illegal [gray] market.”
The various spokespeople at the AiGC and Alberta Gaming, Liquor, and Cannabis (AGLC) have played it close to the vest in public statements on what specific enforcement actions they plan to take.
While online casino players and sports bettors still have plenty of options, the online poker scene in Alberta has been pared considerably.
The site 888 Poker made the decision to enter the regulated market and launched that version of its site on deadline day, Tuesday. But it presently has no competition in the province. PokerStars has exited the Alberta market, and major international site GG Poker registered with AGLC in August but hasn’t yet received approval to launch.
A case currently awaiting a ruling in Supreme Court of Ontario could make player pooling between provinces legal, which would in turn make operating in Alberta more profitable and attractive to online poker sites.
Eric has been a professional editor and writer for more than 25 years, including nearly 20 years of experience covering the gambling industry. He was editor-in-chief of the poker magazine All In from 2005-2015 and manag…
