Canada has made one step towards curbing the prevalence of sports betting adverts in the country. A Senate committee has cleared a bill that would put federal restrictions on the commercials, which it managed to do in 45 seconds and without debate.
The bill is trying to counteract the very real rise of gambling problems that are becoming more persistent as it becomes ever easier to access. Bill S-211 would force the government to “identify measures to regulate sports betting advertising in Canada with a view to restricting the use of such advertising.”
Gambling in Canada is handled similarly to America. Regulations are handled by the state, and wider matters, like those in Bill S-211, are handled by the federal government on a national scale. This would be the second attempt to quash gambling advertising in the country, as a similar bill passed last November, but never made it through before lapsing on January 6.
The Senate adopts ISG Senator Marty Deacon’s Bill S-269 on sports betting. Congratulations, @SenMartyDeacon! Now, off to the House of Commons.https://t.co/elFODkqpCk pic.twitter.com/jPQSbDsori
— Independent Senators Group (ISG) (@ISGSenate) November 8, 2024
Speaking on the matter, the bill sponsor and Senator Marty Deacon said:
“It is foolish to gamble with the health and well-being of Canadians when we already know what the outcome will be.
“It makes absolutely no sense to wait for these problems to arise and then react to them, at which point tens of thousands of Canadians’ lives will have been devastated through problem gambling.
“I had a hope that by making single-game betting legal, we’d see some work to address its harms as well. That has not happened. I did not anticipate the level of promotion that we’re seeing, potentially creating a generation of problem gamblers.”
Medical journal backs Canada gambling ad plans
In September, an editorial from the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) actually called for pushback on ads during sports broadcasts. The CMAJ article, which mostly focuses on the effects of gambling adverts on the youth, is written by Dr. Shannon Charlebois and Dr. Shawn Kelly. From the article:
“Canadian Bill S-211, which passed its second reading in the Senate on June 12, 2025 provides for the development of a national framework to regulate sports betting advertising and set national standards for the prevention of risk for people negatively affected.
“The bill is only a start but must be expedited and passed now to protect Canada’s youth from the harms of exposure to aggressive sports betting advertising.”
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