Problem Gambling and Suicides Surge in Ontario Following 2022 Online Betting Expansion
A CBC News investigation reveals that problem gambling and gambling-related suicides in Ontario have risen sharply since the province expanded private online casino games and sports betting in 2022. Research indicates the number of Ontarians showing signs of gambling problems has nearly tripled, while annual gambling-related suicides have also tripled compared to pre-expansion averages.
A CBC News investigation reports that problem gambling and gambling-related suicides have significantly increased in Ontario following the 2022 expansion of private online casino games and sports betting.
Research from the Alberta Gambling Research Institute (AGRI) found that nearly 130,000 Ontarians now show signs of gambling problems, compared with roughly 43,000 in 2018. The AGRI analysis, which uses the Problem Gambling Severity Index and data from Statistics Canada’s 2025 Canadian Community Health Survey, identified a 0.5 per cent jump in Ontario’s rates of problem gambling compared to 2018. Six months after Ontario’s private casinos opened in 2022, the number of problem gamblers in the province climbed while dropping in the rest of Canada.
The Office of the Chief Coroner of Ontario reported that before the expansion, the province had an average of five gambling-related suicides each year from 2016 to 2021. Since 2022, annual gambling-related suicides have tripled.
Matthew Young, chief research officer for Greo Evidence Insights, warned two years prior about potential harms including addiction, bankruptcies, and suicides. Greo Evidence Insights, formerly known as the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre, was defunded by Ontario in 2019.
Additional studies published in 2026 highlighted further increases in harm. A study published in September 2026 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found a dramatic jump in people with gambling disorders visiting Ontario hospital emergency departments. A March 2026 study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) found a 95.5 per cent increase in men and boys making gambling-related calls to ConnexOntario over the last decade.
In July 2026, Alberta joined Ontario in legalizing online gambling run by private companies.