Montreal study finds high use of unregulated online gambling sites

The Direction régionale de santé publique de Montréal (DRSP) and the Research Chair on Gambling Studies at Concordia University published on 5 November 2026 a study that concludes that, excluding the lottery, 38% of Montreal adults who gamble online use only unregulated sites, and that online gambling rose from 4.4% in 2018 to 13.3% in 2025. On the same day the Quebec Online Gaming Coalition asked Finance Minister Nicolas Marceau for concrete measures in the next budget update.

Methodology and key figures

The report titled "Évolution des pratiques et des risques associés aux jeux de hasard et d’argent à Montréal. 2025-2026" is 22 pages and was published by the DRSP on 5 November 2026; its authors are Jean‑François Biron, Michel Fournier and Émilie Duplessis‑Brochu (DRSP) and Professor Sylvia Kairouz (Concordia). The data come from a telephone survey of 4,002 adults on the Island of Montreal conducted between March and June 2025, followed by an online panel of 4,500 adults; the report warns of limits on the panel’s representativeness.

The paper provides these central figures:

• Overall gambling participation: 39% of adults in 2025, versus 54.5% in 2018 and 74% in 2002.

• Online gambling participation: 4.4% in 2018 and 13.3% in 2025.

• Percentage of adults affected by gambling-related harm: fell from 12.1% to 7.7%.

• Among those who gambled, 4.6% were classified as moderate- or high-risk; the authors note this has never before exceeded 3% in Montreal or Quebec.

• Most affected demographic group: men aged 18 to 34 years.

Platform use and advertising

The online panel found differences depending on whether lottery purchases are counted. Counting online lottery purchases, 63% of adults who gamble online used only Loto‑Québec’s site and apps, 21% used only unregulated sites and 16% used both. Excluding the lottery, the distribution was 46% only on Loto‑Québec, 38% only on unregulated sites and 16% on both.

The survey also recorded public attitudes: 73% of adults would like to ban online gambling advertising and 70% consider access to online gambling too easy.

Quebec Online Gaming Coalition reaction and request to government

The Quebec Online Gaming Coalition reacted on 5 November with a statement titled "Online gambling escapes the Quebec state" and said a majority of 54% of players lean toward private unregulated platforms when the lottery is excluded. The coalition, whose members include Bet99, Betway, DraftKings, Entain, Flutter and Rush Street, asked Finance Minister Nicolas Marceau to use the upcoming budget update to introduce measures. Spokesperson Ariane Gauthier said a framework covering both Loto‑Québec and private companies would give the government "a lever" over the sector and urged the Parti Québécois and the Liberal Party to reach agreement quickly.

Legal context and comparison with Ontario

Section 207(1)(a) of the Criminal Code allows a provincial government to conduct and manage lottery schemes in its province; in Quebec that function is assigned to Loto‑Québec, which today is the only legal online operator in the province. Loto‑Québec is also among the lottery corporations challenging Ontario’s player‑pooling plan before the Supreme Court of Canada.

The report compares its results with an Ipsos study for iGaming Ontario published on 21 May 2026, which found that 91.1% of online players in Ontario’s licensed market use regulated sites; that competitive market opened in April 2022 and generated CA$4.2 billion in gaming revenue in its fourth year.

The comparison with Ontario provides a reference point for the debate, although the report stresses that survey methods differ and do not allow a direct equivalence.

Authors’ interpretation and policy priorities

The authors describe the results on use of unregulated sites as "not surprising" and recommend focusing measures on prevention targeted at young men, on policies that do not rely solely on individual responsibility, and on avoiding using low levels of harm as a pretext to stimulate demand. The report warns against solutions that incentivise consumption and highlights strong public support for banning advertising.

"The results invite reflection on regulation worldwide," the authors write in the report, while insisting on prioritising targeted prevention.

The DRSP warns that the finding of high use of unregulated sites is an observation for Montreal and not an automatic extrapolation to the rest of Quebec.