In February 2023, Loto-Québec and Groupe CH––the parent company of the Montreal Canadiens––announced their intent to build a mini-casino adjacent to the Bell Centre. The mini-casino was set to include 350 video lottery terminals and a dedicated sportsbook area. 

However, Loto-Québec promptly abandoned their proposal after the office of Montreal’s Regional Public Health Director (DRSP) published a 36-page opinion on Sept. 18 opposing the project. This perceived win for public health officials in slowing the growth of sports betting and video lotteries will not prevent a continued influx of wagers. Partnerships between sports teams and local gaming authorities are common and preventing Loto-Québec from offering access to sports betting at the Bell Centre will not prevent tourists and locals from placing their bets. Rather, the DRSP should focus their energy on educating and preventing gambling addiction in children and adolescents.

The DRSP was concerned that the involvement of such an influential and prestigious organization as Groupe CH would normalize the practice of gambling. However, the Montreal Canadiens have already partnered with Mise-o-Jeu, the division of Loto-Québec responsible for sports betting. With their logo appearing on the boards at the Bell Centre, it is too late for the DRSP to prevent the provincial gambling entity from doing business with the Habs, or Groupe CH at large.

In addition to locally-revered sports teams, current and former athletes commonly use their influence and notoriety to promote sportsbooks’ business interests. In 2023, former Cincinnati Reds player Pete Rose placed Ohio’s first legal sports bet. The irony that Rose was banned from baseball for betting on his own games illustrates that there is no stopping gambling from continuing to invade the world of sports. 

Business-wise, the partnerships formed by sports leagues and their teams with sportsbooks and casinos are mutually beneficial. Teams and leagues can collect sponsorship revenue from sportsbooks while also benefiting from the increase in fan engagement––including higher viewership rates and increased gate revenue––generated by participation in betting and fantasy games. 

The Canadian Parliament recognizes sports betting as an opportunity for provinces to grow their revenue. In 2021, Parliament legalized single-event sports betting, allowing provincial gambling entities such as the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) and Loto-Québec to cash in on some of the 38 million CAD in daily wagers Canadians had been placing with offshore sportsbooks.

However, while the financial upside of single-event sports betting is obvious, dangers of gambling cannot be forgotten. A cornerstone of Loto-Québec’s proposed mini-casino was the installation of video lottery terminals, an inclusion the DRSP objected to, citing the addictive nature of these machines. Per the DRSP’s opinion, video gambling addiction, like any other addiction, has direct adverse implications, including potential loss of employment and broken social ties. 

While the cancellation of this project will limit Loto-Québec’s ability to offer convenient access to its services, the DRSP’s decision is somewhat inconsequential; it will not achieve the desired result of slowing the growth of sports betting and video lotteries. This sentiment was echoed in a recent Loto-Québec press release in which President and CEO Jean-François Bergeron expressed that despite his disappointment in its cancellation, Loto-Québec’s future does not depend on the mini-casino project. 

Regardless of the opinion of the DRSP, locals will continue looking for ways to gamble and Loto-Québec will remain happy to take their money. Instead of restricting Loto-Québec’s ability to meet consumer demand, the DRSP should focus on advocating for a comprehensive education program. From a young age, students should be taught about how gambling appeals to the human psyche, similarly to programs which explain the dangers of drugs and alcohol. Education, destigmatization, and legalization surrounding addiction works, as proven by the success of School-Based Drug Abuse Prevention programs in Canada. Gambling addiction poses the same risks to youth as substance addiction, therefore the same preventative approach must be afforded to sports betting.