Many industries have been thrown into chaos over the past few years due to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, and the casino industry is no exception. Despite this, Loto-Québec has posted record numbers for the 2021-2022 fiscal year.
With current trends in the industry, it doesn’t look like this increase in popularity will be slowing down any time soon. And that’s thanks in part to the various factors that have helped maintain the online casino growth in Québec.
In this article, we’ll delve into the numbers and see what the future of online casinos and gambling looks like in Québec.
Gambling industry recovering strongly from COVID-19
COVID-19 made things difficult for the gambling industry not just in Quebec but across all of Canada. Lockdowns forced many casinos and other gaming establishments to close their doors for large parts of 2020 and 2021.
However, the data for Loto-Québec’s 2021-2022 fiscal year shows that sectors across the board are recovering or are doing better than ever. This may surprise some, as gaming establishments were only open for approximately 60% of 2021-2022 due to COVID-19.
Overall, Loto-Québec had total revenues for 2021-2022 of $2.217 billion. This is an increase of an impressive $809.7 million, or 57.5%, compared to the year before. Lottery sales played a significant role in this, with revenues of $1.043 billion—the first time in its history that the lottery sector topped $1 billion.
The corporation also met its target budget by posting a consolidated net income of $1.143 billion. That’s an increase of $685.6 million—up 149.8%—from the previous year.
The total revenue and consolidated income were at 81% and 84%, respectively, of their totals compared to the pre-pandemic 2019-2020 fiscal year.
All casino sectors seeing growth in Quebec
While lottery has performed the most impressively, all Quebec casino sectors also see strong growth. However, they are not quite at the point of exceeding pre-COVID-19 revenue levels.
The growth these sectors have shown is a good indication of a positive trend toward continued increases in revenue.
Casinos and gaming halls returning to form
The casino and gaming hall sector posted impressive revenues, considering these establishments could only remain open for approximately 60% of the 2021-2022 fiscal year. During this time, even when locations could open, they were still subject to capacity limitations and reduced hours.
Revenues for this sector were $657.2 million, which was a $323.5 million or 96.9% increase from the 2020-2021 year. Compared to the pre-pandemic 2019-2020 year, casinos and gaming halls achieved a 68% result.
Online casino revenue also grew massively, perhaps because patrons could not head to physical locations throughout much of the year. Online casino revenue totaled $18.4 million, up 7.4% from the previous year.
Online casino revenues accounted for 40.4% of all casino and gaming hall revenue. This is a massive degree of growth, as they only accounted for 10.1% in the 2019-2020 fiscal year.
Gaming establishments recovering strongly
Gaming establishments also posted impressive numbers, increasing revenues by 141.1% compared to the 2020-2021 fiscal year. In total, revenues were $524.1 million, an increase of $306.7 million. These results represent 60% of revenues from the pre-pandemic 2019-2020 year.
Despite the impressive growth, this sector was severely impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns. The 2021-2022 year had more days where establishments could open compared to the previous year, but bars were still closed for much of this time. This meant that gaming customers could not play video lottery terminals, which accounts for a large part of this sector.
However, the 2021-2022 numbers paint an optimistic picture for future years as the sector continues to recover.
Online gaming continues to grow
Though COVID-19 lockdowns negatively impacted halls and establishments, the many Quebecers who were unable to gamble in person turned to online gaming and lotoquebec.com instead.
For the 2021-2022 year, online gaming—including lottery and casino games—brought in $390 million of revenue. This represents a 6.1% increase over the 2020-2021 fiscal year.
Most interestingly, these sales account for 17.6% of Loto-Québec’s total revenue. This is a considerable increase compared to the revenue distribution before the COVID-19 pandemic, as online gaming only accounted for 5.0% of total revenue in 2019-2020.
Loto-Québec attributes this impressive growth to website improvements that have made them more appealing than illegal gaming websites and other online competitors. With the recent changes to gambling rules in Canada, we expect that online casinos and lotteries are only going to continue to grow.
The future of online casinos in Quebec
There has been a lot of news regarding online casinos and mobile gambling in Quebec lately. This is due in part to what is happening with the sector nationally.
Last year, the Canadian Senate passed Bill C-218, which lifted the ban on single-event sports gambling. This, of course, will only increase growth in the gambling sector, with many provinces combining this new development with expansions to their online gaming offerings.
Ontario was one of the first provinces to launch its expanded services, with the iGaming Ontario subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).
Quebec is also making moves toward improving its online casino offerings. Earlier this year, Loto-Québec announced that it would be expanding its online presence through its ongoing partnership with Evolution Gaming, one of the world’s most highly regarded online casino providers. The new live casino games will be hosted on Casino Montreal, a subsidiary of Loto-Québec.
The expansion focuses on Evolution Gaming’s Dual Play product, which allows players to access live casino games both online and in person.
The partnership bodes well for Loto-Québec’s online casino growth, as Evolution Gaming recently announced revenues that topped $1 billion.
Conclusion
Quebec’s gambling industry has nicely weathered the last couple of years of COVID-19 uncertainty, thanks in part to online gaming and casinos. And the shift to online gaming shows no signs of slowing, with improvements to the sector showing promise for even more significant revenues.
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