Disclaimer: The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is in charge of gambling in the province of Ontario. Residents of Ontario should seek legal bookmakers in their region.

Before you start placing bets on esports in Canada, there are a few things to consider. In this article, we’ll go over the ins and outs of legal esports betting in Canada and in addition to that, we’ll show you how to select a betting site that is safe and legal. This way, you can bet with peace of mind knowing that the betting site is licensed. Plus with helpful advice on how to safely fund your esports bets, you’ll have everything you need to get started. So keep reading to see the best guide to esports betting Canada has to offer.

Esports Betting Canada

© Blizzard Entertainment

Is esports betting legal in Canada?

In Canada, legal sports and esports betting is possible, with each province having the authority to regulate gambling activities within its own jurisdictions. However, the growth of the Canadian sports betting sector is still in its early stages and things are still evolving.

As of April 4th 2022, Ontario become the first province to host a competitive sports betting market. Currently, there are many active bookmakers in Ontario with more anticipated to launch in the near future.

Ontario isn’t the only province expanding, Alberta has also displayed its intent to allow multiple betting providers by releasing an RFP for two sportsbooks.

With so many interplays still occurring in the Canadian betting sector, it’s critical to be aware of the changing situation.

Canada’s favourite esports betting options

You’ll be able to enjoy betting on all of the biggest and best esports from Canada. Here is just a quick overview of Canada’s most popular esports.

  • League of Legends: This epic Riot Games title has been the world’s most popular esport for many years. The MOBA gaming action is normally focused on the yearly League of Legends World Championships. This sees millions of people live streaming the gaming entertainment, and you’ll find plenty of LoL bets at all good esports betting sites.
  • Counter Strike: Global Offensive: Everybody loves a good first-person shooter, and CSGO has proven to be the best. Just take a look at one of the CSGO Majors and you’ll see how well this game has adapted to the streaming era. Plus it’s easy to bet on CSGO at all of our recommended esports betting sites.
  • Dota 2: This MOBA game’s main claim to fame is that it has produced the world’s best paying esports tournament. Every year The International breaks records for its prize winnings, plus the Valve Corporation game is great fun to watch and play.
  • Overwatch: Who knew that Overwatch was going to become a world-beater? The Blizzard Entertainment title cleverly blends first-person shooter and battle arena themes, and it’s become a massive esports hit. This is largely thanks to the well-structured Overwatch League that is set up just like the NFL.
  • Valorant: Riot Games clearly knows a thing or two about esports. Not only has this games developer given us the era-defining LoL, but it recently followed it up with Valorant. This is like CSGO but with lots of cool extra features. Try some Valorant betting and you’ll see what we mean.

Which Canadian esports teams should you bet on?

Canada has already produced some very successful esports teams and players.

Just take a look at Luminosity Gaming. This Toronto-based team was only formed in 2015, but it has already proven to be a force in everything from CSGO and Rainbow Six to Hearthstone and Call of Duty.

Then there’s the likes of the Vancouver Titans. This Canadian team has been a mainstay of the Overwatch League in the Pacific West Division. Plus with Team NP doing incredible things in the Dota 2 realm, it’s easy to see that Canada has produced some amazing esports talent.

esports betting sites in canada, like Bet365 and Betway

© Riot Games

What types of esports bets are there?

All of the best esports betting sites will give you a massive range of betting options for each game. Take a look at Bet365 and you’ll find that you get well over a dozen different bets for each major esport. What’s best is that because these are massive betting brands, it means that you should be able to get some seriously competitive odds.

Don’t forget that you won’t just get to bet prematch on esports. This is because betting sites will give you the chance to bet live after the game has begun.

Plus you can go to specialist esports betting sites like Rivalry and discover a range of cool features to take your bets to the next level. This is because brands like Rivalry will include free live streaming embedded on their sites. Not only is this great fun, but it means that you can put down a much more accurate in-play bet.

Try these esports betting markets

All of the best betting sites will give you lots of different options for putting down your esports bets. The most basic kind of bet that you can take is to bet on the match winner of each sports match.

In addition to this, many newcomers to esports betting will simply put down a bet on the outright winner of each tournament like The International, League of Legends World Championship and so on.

However if you go to betting sites like Rivalry or Bet365 in Canada, then you should be able to enjoy some more interesting esports betting options. For example, you might be able to bet on the winner of each map in a game of LoL or CSGO. Other map-related bets include being able to bet on whether there will be a decider map, or whether there will be an odd or even number of maps played.

There should also be several team-related esports bets. This could be things like which team gets the first kill, or the first to five kills. Keep your eye out for those esports betting sites that feature bets that are specific to each game. This means that you could bet on the number of headshots in a CSGO game, or even who will slay the first dragon or destroy the first tower in LoL.

Making payments to fund your esports bets

Discussing payments might not be hugely exciting. But it’s a good idea to think about how you will be funding your esports bets. After all, your choice of payment method can have a big impact on how fast you can make deposits and withdrawals.

Bear in mind that Canada’s complex online gambling legalities means you might not get access to the full range of payment options that are available in other countries. But if you want to safely fund your esports betting Canada’s gamers should be able to use the following options.

  • Credit cards and debit cards: Most decent betting sites will allow you to use credit and debit card brands like MasterCard and Visa for making deposits and withdrawals. Deposits should be free and instant. However, withdrawals may take a handful of working days to land in your account.
  • Ewallets: Many betting sites will accept a variety of ewallet brands like Skrill, Neteller, EcoPayz and PayPal. These offer you the advantage of not having to enter in any potentially sensitive financial information at the betting site. Plus you will often enjoy fast payouts with ewallets. The only downside is that you might not be able to claim bonuses with an ewallet deposit.
  • Other payment options: Many betting sites will accept payment methods that are specific to Canada. These normally include payment solutions like Interac, Instadebit and iDebit. Plus you may also be able to use prepaid cards such as Paysafecard or Neosurf. Bear in mind that if you make a bank transfer deposit or withdrawal, it could take up to a week for the money to show up in your account.

All of which shows that Canadians should have many safe and secure ways to fund their esports bets.