Author: Grant Mahon

On April 4, 2022, online sports betting went live in Ontario. Canada’s most populous province now has a regulated internet gambling landscape, where 17 operators are allowed to do their business. One of those is DraftKings Sportsbook, which has gone live on Wednesday, May 18, some six weeks after most other Ontario betting sites.

From now on, Canadian bettors from Ontario have the luxury to bet online, as well as play internet casino games on the DraftKings platform. According to the company founder and CEO Jason Robins, this is a major landmark, which has the potential to take DraftKings to the next level.

DraftKings Not Worried About the Late Start in Ontario

Based in Boston, Massachusetts, DraftKings is an American company whose online sportsbook is available in 18 states in the US. Its online casinos – including the recently-acquired Golden Nugget Online Gaming (GNOG) – are available in eight US states.

Encouraged by its success in the United States, the company decided to spread its business empire over the northern border. The launch of DraftKings Sportsbook Canada, however, came one month and a half after the launch of its competitions.

It’s strange because, in the United States, DraftKings always wanted to be among the first to launch. It launched on Day 1 in New York, New Jersey, Arizona, Louisiana, Michigan, and Indiana.

The reason why DraftKings Sportsbook CA didn’t launch earlier is that the company has worked on clinching two major deals over the last couple of weeks. One of those was the launch of the DraftKings Sportsbook in Ontario; the other was the takeover of the GNOK.

According to Robins, the late start will not affect the company too much. In fact, the DraftKings co-founder believes that the sportsbook will perform better than expected. In fact, it’s already been doing better than what was projected at the start of 2022.

DraftKings Stops Its DFS Product in Ontario

DraftKings Sportsbook launched in Ontario on May 18, but this brand had a presence in Canada for several years. What we’re talking about is the DraftKings daily fantasy platform which had been operating in Ontario’s DFS grey market.

The word to focus on is ‘had’ because DraftKings DFS is no longer available in Ontario. Due to the provincial gaming authorities asking operators to stop working in the grey area, DraftKings decided to suspend its unregulated DFS product for the time being. Once Ontario regulates the DFS landscape, it’s very likely we will see the return of DraftKings.

As per a recent poll, most residents of New Jersey are now in favor of a total ban on smoking inside casinos. In turn, this means that people from the Garden State would like to see all nine Atlantic City casinos stop allowing smoking on their premises.

The poll in question was conducted by Stockton University’s Polling Institute between April 4 and April 13 by telephone. According to researchers, the poll had a +/-3.8% margin of error.

No Smoking in Atlantic City Casinos?

In 2006, the state of New Jersey passed the Smoke-Free Air Act, which made indoor smoking illegal. However, the act did leave out the eleven casinos located in Atlantic City, enabling the casino owners to decide for themselves whether to keep a quarter of the indoor gaming space as a smoking-friendly zone.

In 2022, all of the Atlantic City casinos allow the patrons to smoke in up to 25% of the gaming space. However, that might come to an end soon as the public opinion has shifted in the favor of a smoking ban over the last couple of years.

According to the Stockton University’s poll, almost one-third of respondents (62% to be precise) are now in favor of seeing a total smoking ban imposed on Atlantic City casinos. Another 31% believe that the current laws are more than suitable, while the rest of respondents have no opinion on the matter.

Casinos Fear Revenue Drop

According to a study by the Casino Association of New Jersey, a total smoking ban would lead to a 25% drop in casino revenue. The reason is that casinos are seen as safe havens for smokers. They’re the only public places in the state where people can smoke indoors without facing fines.

Casinos would love to keep the current smoking laws in place, suggesting that there might be an out-of-the-box solution to the problem. Rather than banning smoking completely, casinos could start using advanced ventilation systems to deal with the issue.

However, health experts seem to disagree. They believe that it’s impossible to completely get rid of the risks that come along with indoor smoking. According to them, not only are casino patrons in danger of developing serious health issues, but casino employees as well.

Canadian hip-hop artist Drake made the headlines by placing Super Bowl bets worth $1.3 million on the Los Angeles Rams to win the Lombardi, as well as on Odell Beckham Jr. scoring a touchdown and recording over 62.5 running yards. Drake won two of those three bets, making himself a profit of more than a mil.

He did it on the cryptocurrency betting platform called Stake.com. Despite having to pay out over $1 million, the company doesn’t seem to feel sorry. After all, the whole Drake saga made them famous around the world.

It worked so well for them that they decided to go one step further and get themselves a deal with the 4x Grammy winner. The story goes that Drake has agreed to be the host of a live show event called ‘Drake on Stake.’

Drake’s Live Show in a Nutshell

The collaboration between Drake and Stake.com is envisioned as a live event, in which the rapper would bet on sports and play casino games on live stream. The plan is that whatever he wins during ‘Drake on Stake’ would go to the viewers.

At the moment, it’s not clear when the even is going to take place, with Drake promising to share the exact date on socials. Further, we also don’t know whether it’s going to be a one-off event or a series of live shows, although the people from Stake.com did suggest the latter is more likely.

The company is planning to create a number of promotional videos featuring Drake, with the intention of introducing their brand to the North American audience.

Drake is not the only celebrity who’s signed a partnership deal with Stake.com. Former Manchester City player Sergio Aguero also became their brand ambassador after a heart problem made him end his professional soccer career.