Quebec Sports Betting
Quebec is home to almost a quarter of Canadians. There are 3 major professional teams playing out of Montreal, and Quebec City continues to try to bring an NHL team back to the city. If you talk to a Quebec resident about the Canadiens or Alouettes you can quickly see the passion for their teams and the popular Canadian sports.
Quebec offers regulated sports betting under the Mise-o-jeu brand. Loto-Quebec accepts Mise-o-jeu bets both online and through lottery retailers.
I think it’s great that Quebec has taken the step to offer sports betting online. It’s just unfortunate that the odds are so bad that Mise-o-jeu is really not a real option for Quebec residents.
Best Sports Betting Sites for Quebec Residents
I suggest Quebec residents do their online sports betting through at least one of these betting sites. They are each dedicated to providing a great betting experience to Canadians through fair odds, great sign up bonuses and Canadian inspired betting options.
Quebec Sports Betting Rules
- 1100% up to $200
- Licensed and regulated in Canada
- Easy deposits & withdrawals including Interac
- Competitive betting lines
- 2100% up to $200
- Exclusive to Canadians
- Easy to use deposit options including Interac and Bitcoin
- Wide variety of betting lines
- 3See Website for Details
- Most popular betting site worldwide
- State of the art live betting platform including streaming of several events
- Fixed odds for horse racing
Offline sports betting is available in the form of Mise-o-jeu, which is a sports betting lottery offered by Loto Quebec. With Mise-o-jeu you are able to place wagers at your local convenience store by filling out a mise-o-jeu ticket. The problem with Mise-o-jeu is that the odds are quite a bit worse than what you can find at an online betting. Sports betting fans! Two websites are now available to make your predictions. Fill out a selection slip or generate a bar code, then go to a retailer to finalize the transaction. A partial list of betting questions is available at our retailers.
Mise-o-jeu Betting
Sports Betting in Quebec 2021 With the second largest population in Canada, Quebec is a major sports market. Home to the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Alouettes and dozens of junior and collegiate level teams, the province loves its sports on every level. Check out our sports betting options! Now with even more online betting options to choose from! You can even place bets during live games. Place bets online. Fill out a selection slip or generate a bar code and go to a retailer to finalize your transaction. Loto Quebec Sports Betting Permanent residents in Quebec, one of the more progressive provinces when it comes to sports betting in Canada, have Loto Quebec as their “in house” gambling source. Through the lotoquebec.com portal, punters can participate in the Mise O Jeu brand of online sports betting.
The government run sports betting program in Quebec is called Mise-o-jeu. Quebec residents are able to bet online through the Mise-o-jeu website or offline at any Loto-Quebec retailer.
Similar to many other provinces, Mise-o-jeu does not accept single game bets. Instead you are only allowed to place parlay bets with between 2 and 8 picks per wager. In order for the parlay wager to win, each of your picks must be correct.
Betting Online
To bet online you first have to create a Mise-o-jeu account. This involves entering your personal information and also being verified as a Quebec resident. After you have completed the sign up you can then make your deposit and place your bets at the site.
It’s just as easy to sign up at one of the 3 sportsbooks I recommended above, except you won’t have to verify where you live when you deposit. You will also be treated to a nice sign up bonus, fair odds and great customer support.
Betting Offline
To bet offline you must first access the Mise-o-jeu website and set up your parlay betting card. Each of the picks for your parlay bet will provide you with a prediction number. You must enter these numbers on the selection slip at the Loto-Quebec outlet in order to buy your bet ticket. You can also print off a bar code with your selections that you can use to purchase your betting slip at a retailer. If all of your picks are correct then you will be able to cash your winning Mise-o-jeu ticket at any Loto-Quebec retailer.
I have to chime in here and say that the Mise-o-jeu odds are so bad I have to advise Quebec residents to stay away. I did an odds comparison between a Mise-o-jeu and Bodog with the exact same 4 team NHL parlay and found that you win double betting at Bodog – check it out here. Any of the three sportsbooks listed above are great alternatives for Quebecers who aren’t interested in being taken advantage of by their provincial government.
Major Sports Teams in Quebec
- Montreal Alouettes – CFL
- Montreal Canadiens – NHL
- Montreal Impact – MLS
News broke last week that single-game sports betting was all but a done deal in Canada. It’s exciting for a country long forced to choose between playing parlay cards or choosing any number of largely unregulated alternatives.
Even before the announcement of an upcoming government-introduced bill, DraftKings CEO Jason Robins talked on the company’s earnings call about the potential growth into Ontario, which would be the sixth-biggest state if Canada were part of the U.S.
The single-game sports betting bill would represent a departure from the country’s long-established ban on single-game betting. Though it is not a done deal yet, it appears likely to pass, finally.
Background on Canada ban on single-game betting
The criminal law system in the United States is split between federal and state jurisdiction. In the realm of gambling regulation, jurisdiction has historically rested with the states, with some notable exceptions like the Wire Act and PASPA.
Legal Sports Betting In Maryland
However, in Canada, the federal government has principal authority in establishing criminal laws throughout the country. Provincial authorities maintain the ability to regulate minor offenses, dubbed provincial offences.
Though not a perfect analogy, one can think of the Canadian federal government as having authority to regulate felonies, while the provinces have the ability to oversee misdemeanors.
Section 202 of the Criminal Code of Canada is the law that currently bans the operation of gambling businesses and forbids single-game sports betting. Section 204 of the Criminal Code created the exceptions that allowed for the parlay-style system that has become popular across the country.
Time for a change?
The last major change to Canadian gaming laws came in 1985. The adoption of single-game sports betting is a position that has been pushed several times in recent years. Indeed, members of parliament from the Windsor area pushed aggressively to legalize single-game sports betting during the early days of the Christie lawsuits in NewJersey.
The opposition to legalization came from many of the same parties who sued the state of New Jersey to oppose the legalization efforts in the Garden State.
Back in 2012, many of the major U.S. sports leagues and the NCAA (who has a single member institution in Canada) sent last-minute letters reiterating their greatest hits about why they oppose single-game sports betting to members of Canadian Parliament. That effectively killed bill C-290, which had nearly skated by to its final reading without much opposition.
The 2012-2013 effort was only the first of a number of recent efforts often initiated as private members bills, which historically have little chance of passing, though single-game betting had more support than most private member bills. Even the most recent effort appeared to start as a private members bill until Federal Justice Minister David Lametti introduced legislation seemingly aligning nearly all major government parties in favor of legalizing single-game sports betting.
Legal single-game betting a game-changer?
The hope with single-game betting is that it will provide a boost to the economies of the various provinces that offer the contests when allowed. An economic jump-start for the casino industry in the border city of Windsor has long been a catalyst for the region’s politicians supporting the expansion initiatives.
That issue becomes more pressing with the city’s neighbor, Detroit, having a casino industry that has now legalized Michigan sports betting.
Of course, the success of single-game sports betting is going to depend a lot on what the market looks like, much like we have seen with the rollout of sports betting around the U.S. Some jurisdictions have had great success, whereas others have built systems that are built with obstacles to success, effectively limiting revenues to the state.
What to expect when expecting sports betting in Canada
The first area where single-game sports betting in Canada may appear different (at least at first) than much of the United States is that the provinces currently operate monopolies on the provincial gambling operations.
Not only do the provincial lottery and gaming authorities control the current parlay sports betting offerings across the country, but they also control the casinos and online poker in the province of Quebec.
While the Ontario provincial government released a budget that would allow for private entities to enter a new iGaming space with potential inclusion of sports betting under the umbrella, this has not yet played out. The move would see iGaming fall under the jurisdiction of the province’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission, which oversees a variety of industries including aspects of the horse racing industry and Ontario’s legal cannabis stores.
Not the first rodeo for Canadian iGaming
The idea of establishing an iGaming market previously appeared in the 2019 budget. The process of building an iGaming market in any of the province is likely to be lengthy, with stakeholders on both sides likely to engage in a heated debate.
Ontario, in particular, has a history with efforts to bring privatization to government monopolies (called Government Business Enterprises) that has long been a sore spot, including the privatization of the 407 toll-highway for $3.1 billion in 1999, which in 2019 was valued at more than $30 billion and has been called one of the worst deals ever made.
While this effort would effectively create a new market, as opposed to privatizing an existing market, it is uncertain how this will play out and if it would generate a different reaction.
Quebec Sports Betting Sites
Private eyes?
Efforts to privatize Ontario’s provincially run monopolies like the LCBO (provincially owned and operated liquor stores) have appeared periodically over time; in fact, both liberal and conservative governments have floated the idea at various times.
Ontario faces a challenge with a recently projected budget deficit of more than $38 billion in 2020 and another $33 billion projected in 2021. Historically, various provincial leadership regimes have looked at privatizing government-owned monopolies like the LCBO and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Commission (OLGC) to shore up stretched budgets. But this plan is different from traditional models of privatization.
Time will tell whether the Ford government is able to follow through on this aspect of the budget, but it could allow for a U.S.-style online gaming marketplace that includes sports betting if the pieces fall into place.
Room for partners?
Even without a ‘free market,’ there could still be room for private enterprises to participate.
If the iGaming market does not develop immediately and sports betting is instead under the oversight of the OLGC, there might still be room for partnerships.
Ontario previously worked with Caesars World to build and operate a casino as a joint venture, though the province maintains ownership. A similar type of deal could conceivably be possible for sports betting products should the provinces choose to depart from their current sports-based branding of Proline in Ontario, the WesternCanada Lottery provinces and Atlantic Canada, Sports Action in British Columbia, and Mise O Jeu in Quebec.
The other key area for development is the expansion of mobile betting. Provincially-regulated online gaming in Canada remains nascent and has room for growth. A number of provinces still do not allow for the placing of parlay bets online, though both Quebec and British Columbia do allow for wagering online via the lottery retailer websites.
Change is coming for sports betting in Canada
After spending years being unable to legalize single-game sports betting, Canada appears poised to finally cross that bridge.
An effort that began as an opportunity to gain a competitive advantage and provide a different product offering in border cities than was available on the U.S.-side has transformed into a need to remain competitive with the products being offered south of the border and through offshore competitors.
While single-game sports betting appears poised to finally be coming to Canada, now with the support of nearly all major professional sports leagues, there are remaining questions as to just what it will look like when it arrives.