BCLC urges government to pass single-event betting amendment
Canadian provincial lottery operator the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) has thrown its backing behind a bill that proposes legalising single-event sports betting in the country.
Introduced in the Canadian House of Commons in November of last year, C-13 seeks to amend paragraph 207(4)(b) of the Criminal Code to make it lawful for bets to be placed on a single sports or athletics event.
At present, Canada’s Criminal Code permits consumers to only wager on at least three games or more, meaning that a wager on a single match or event is illegal.
However, support for single-event betting has increased in recent months, with the BCLC having previously voiced its support for legalisation of this form of wagering, along with media business Score Media and Gaming (theScore).
“Our players have wanted single-event sports betting for a long time,” BCLC director of eGaming Stewart Groumoutis said. “For example, this weekend is the Super Bowl and our players want to be able to simply bet on the winner, which they are unable to do under the current legislation."