Woodbine was boxed out of the Ontario sports betting scene for very Canadian reasons. As a result, under the current legal and regulatory structure in the country, Ontario-regulated sportsbooks couldn’t offer wagering on horse racing, only Woodbine could.
That meant the only legal way to wager on horse racing in Ontario was at the track, off-track betting facilities, and using the two digital platforms offered by Woodbine itself, HPIbet and Dark Horse Bets. Operators such as bet365, which was available in Ontario before the launch of its new regulated market in April 2022,Woodbine was successful in lobbying for the exclusion of horse racing from the bill that legalized single-event wagering in Canada in the summer of 2021.
So, while bet365 will now offer pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing to its customers, the bets will be processed behind the scenes by Woodbine, and the horse-racing industry will get a cut of the handle. On Thursday, the web browser version of bet365 in Ontario was offering horse racing with a note that it was"Operated by Woodbine Entertainment Group.
“In addition to being that revenue source, we're now going to have the opportunity to reach out to a whole new demographic of fans and wagering customers,” Lawson said. The timing of Wednesday’s announcement is important, as the 164th running of the King’s Plate at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto is this Sunday. It’s also the first time since 1951 that the race is going by the King’s Plate, as it is named after the ruling British monarch and is being run for the first time since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.