Alberta Minister Says Sports Betting, iGaming Launch On Track for July 13

The minister in charge of Alberta’s sweeping overhaul of regulated sports betting and iGaming said on Wednesday that they are sticking to a July 13 launch date for the province’s new regulatory framework.

Key Takeaways

• Alberta's regulated sports betting and iGaming market is still set to launch on July 13 after nearly two years of planning and industry consultation.
• Minister Dale Nally said the province delayed a possibly earlier launch at operators’ request, and that it wants to move gamblers away from unregulated betting sites into a safer legal market.
• The new regulatory ecosystem will include responsible gambling measures, revenue sharing with First Nations, and potentially dozens of licensed operators competing with the AGLC's Play Alberta.

Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally even suggested that they could have already launched that competitive iGaming market, but ultimately opted for a more gradual approach after hearing from a growing number of operators interested in the Western Canadian province.

"After nearly two years of planning, two years of collaboration and preparation, Alberta's regulated iGaming market is almost here,” Nally said Wednesday at the SBC Summit Canada conference in Toronto. "On July 13th, Alberta will officially launch its expanded and regulated online gaming market.”

The July 13 launch date for the newAlberta sports betting and iGaming market has been known for weeks now, but Nally's comments suggest there will be no further delay.

That commitment comes as Alberta has been inching toward the launch of its regulated iGaming market for years. There was even chatter about a late 2024 debut at one point.

Eventually, though, the provincial government pumped the brakes to allow it to digest more feedback. It thenpassed legislation last year that officially set it on a course for the July 13 launch.

Nally, though, suggested that the launch could have happened already if not for heeding the concerns of some operators.

"I wanted to launch earlier,” Nally said during a Q&A session after his opening remarks. "We were ready to launch earlier. We were going to go in May, but it was … the operators that said to us that they wanted us to hold back. And so, through consultation with industry, we landed on July 13th as being that sweet spot, and so I am confident that we are going to be ready.”

https://www.covers.com/industry/alberta-nally-sports-betting-igaming-launch-progress-set-may-2026