Ontario reports record-breaking December for revenue

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2025/02/26: Light & Wonder reports record-breaking US$3.2 billion full-year revenue 2025/09/26: Ontario reports record CA$8.1 billion wagers in August 2025/01/20: Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reports record igaming revenue in December 2025/11/25: Ontario online gambling sector sets new record in October

The Backstory

How Ontario’s hot streak set up December’s record

Ontario’s record December capped months of gathering momentum in the province’s regulated online market. Regulators had been logging bigger totals through the fall, as operators leaned on casino-led growth, steadier betting activity and improving player engagement. Those trends offer the context for December’s peak, from higher wagers to rising revenue per active account, and help explain why the market’s baseline appears stronger heading into the new year.

The latest surge followed a pattern established earlier in 2025. Total wagers and revenue climbed in successive waves, punctuated by fresh highs in August, October and November, each time broadening the base of active accounts while reinforcing online casino’s dominance. That cadence matters: it shows December’s jump was less a one-off and more the culmination of gains that built across product lines and user cohorts.

Fall acceleration: consecutive records in October and November

The market broke through first in October, when Ontario posted its strongest month since launch with nearly CA$9.2 billion in wagers and non-adjusted gross gaming revenue of CA$367.7 million. The month also marked a step-up in scale, with almost 1.3 million active player accounts and casino revenue up 43% year over year to CA$303.8 million, according to the regulator’s update detailed in Ontario’s online gambling sector sets new record in October. Betting accounted for 13% of wagers at CA$1.2 billion, while peer-to-peer poker slipped month over month, reflecting continued concentration in casino play.

November extended that trajectory. Ontario’s market crossed the CA$400 million revenue threshold for the first time, with non-adjusted gross gaming revenue reaching CA$406.2 million and total wagers edging to CA$9.3 billion, as reported in Ontario igaming revenue peaks at CA$406.2 million in November. Active accounts hit a post-launch high of 1.297 million, and average revenue per active account rose to CA$313. The mix shifted slightly: casino revenue eased 2% from October to CA$298 million but still held 73% share; betting revenue jumped 75% month over month to CA$102 million, aided by a fuller sports calendar and ongoing product refinements. Poker’s share remained small at 2%, although revenue improved to CA$6.3 million.

These back-to-back records set the stage for December’s peak by lifting both the market’s volume and its monetization metrics, even as operators managed fluctuations in account activity heading into the holidays.

Summer inflection: August signaled a higher floor

The fall surge traces to an inflection in late summer. In August, Ontario generated a record CA$8.1 billion in total cash wagers, up 34.6% year over year and 8% month over month, according to Ontario reports record CA$8.1 billion wagers in August. Non-adjusted revenue climbed to CA$334.8 million, up 40.5% from the prior year. Online casinos did the heavy lifting, taking 89% of wager share with CA$7.2 billion and delivering CA$267.8 million in revenue, a 44% annual increase. Betting also advanced, with CA$765 million in wagers and CA$60.2 million in revenue, while peer-to-peer poker remained the smallest segment.

Operator moves helped. DraftKings expanded its portfolio by launching the Golden Nugget Online Gaming brand after securing a provincial license, broadening content and promotional footprints as football ramped up. That combination—fresh supply with the return of major sports—provided a running start into the fall, lifting activity levels that persisted through year-end.

Product mix, liquidity and the user base

Across the August-to-December run, casino play remained the market’s anchor. In October, casino wagers accounted for 85% of the total and revenue rose 43% year over year. In November, casino held nearly three-quarters of revenue at CA$298 million, even as betting spiked month over month. December continued to show casino’s weight in the mix, with the category claiming the largest share of non-adjusted revenue and wagers, reinforcing the view that slots and table games underpin Ontario’s revenue stability while sports adds volatility.

Poker has been a smaller contributor but with potential catalysts. In early November, the Court of Appeal for Ontario cleared residents to play peer-to-peer games with participants outside Canada on regulated sites, opening access to global liquidity pools for online poker and daily fantasy sports. That ruling, noted in the October record report, could support gradual gains in poker revenue and engagement, though the category’s share remained near 1–2% in subsequent months.

User metrics underline the market’s maturation. Active player accounts climbed steadily into November, then eased slightly in December while average revenue per active account increased. That pattern fits a sector where operators prioritize higher-value cohorts and targeted promotions during peak calendar periods, sustaining revenue growth even amid normal seasonal churn.

Regional benchmarks: U.S. growth underscores the runway

Ontario’s December milestone fits a broader North American expansion in regulated online gambling. Pennsylvania reported record monthly igaming revenue in December, with licensed platforms generating more than US$223.6 million, up over the prior month’s record and more than 35% year over year, according to Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reports record igaming revenue in December. The state’s total regulated gaming revenue topped US$530 million for the month, illustrating how online channels can offset softness in certain retail verticals. Pennsylvania’s mix—retail slots down year over year while online slots rose 40%—mirrors Ontario’s casino-led gains and signals ongoing digital substitution and new-play expansion.

These U.S. results serve as a yardstick for Ontario’s potential scale and resilience. As more games, live-dealer formats and progressive jackpots circulate across jurisdictions, the content cycle can reinforce engagement across borders, especially in shared supplier ecosystems.

Supplier tailwinds and content pipelines

Supplier performance also points to underlying strength. Light & Wonder reported a record US$3.2 billion in full-year consolidated revenue, up 10%, with gaming revenue rising 12% to US$2.1 billion on 22% growth in machine sales tied to market share gains in North America and Australia. Its online gambling revenue increased 9% in 2024, while SciPlay grew 6% to US$821 million, the company said in Light & Wonder reports record-breaking US$3.2 billion full-year revenue. The company also moved to acquire Grover Gaming’s charitable business, expanding distribution for its content library across regulated land-based markets. Those investments suggest a deeper pipeline of omnichannel titles that can bolster Ontario’s casino engagement.

For operators, richer content, stronger studio rosters and more frequent feature launches support higher time-on-site and conversion—factors that underpin the increases in average revenue per active account seen into year-end. As suppliers scale their cross-platform strategies, provincial markets like Ontario stand to benefit from faster localization and broader portfolios without sacrificing regulatory rigor.

Taken together, a summer lift in wagers, fall records in activity and revenue, supportive court rulings on liquidity and a healthy supplier backdrop created the runway for Ontario’s record December. The stakes now center on whether operators can sustain higher monetization with a slightly leaner active base and how regulatory adjustments—such as expanded poker pools or tighter advertising rules—might shape the next phase of growth.