An offshore sportsbook has actually formally been told to knock it off by the Canadian legal system.

A judge for the Court of King's Bench of Manitoba approved an injunction on Monday versus Bodog, an online gaming operator based in Antigua and Barbuda.

The registry states the injunction was granted and checked in court. Reasons are to follow at a later date.

Monday's injunction was effectively looked for by the government-owned Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Corp. (MBLL), which declared Bodog was running illegally in the province. MBLL likewise declared that Bodog was diverting organization away from its online gambling platform, PlayNow.

PlayNow is the only authorized iGaming site in Manitoba, and its proprietor, MBLL, desires Bodog to stop marketing and operating within the province. On Monday, that is what the court told Bodog to do.

"This court orders and states that the Respondents have no lawful authority to provide online betting services and products, whether through bodog.eu, bodog.net or any other related successor or replacement websites, or to market such online product or services to persons located in Manitoba, as such activities are contrary to areas 201, 202, and 206 of the Criminal Code," Monday's order said.

- Government-owned Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Corp. has actually obtained a court injunction versus Antigua and Barbuda-based Bodog.
- The Crown corporation is attempting to stop Bodog from marketing and operating in the Canadian province, declaring the overseas sportsbook and casino betting site is breaking the law and diverting business far from MBLL's PlayNow platform.
- The injunction is a possibly precedent-setting advancement for Canada, which has a big "grey market" for online gambling.

The injunction gotten on Monday was submitted on behalf of the Canadian Lottery Coalition, an advocacy group that includes several government-owned video gaming corporations, consisting of MBLL.

Those lottos have been pressing back against offshore iGaming operators in Canada. A court injunction versus Bodog could now set a crucial precedent.

That is because, with the exception of Ontario, the bulk of online gambling in Canada occurs in the so-called "grey market."

The term shows online gaming occurring on sites that might be controlled abroad or outside a certain province, but not by the province where the bets are actually being put. Those "grey" sites contend for organization with provincially managed sites like PlayNow.

Truly false

Offshore operators have been allowed to take bets from Canadians for years without much commotion being made. That has actually begun to alter, however, especially considering that the decriminalization of single-game sports betting in Canada in 2021, and the launch of a competitive iGaming market in Ontario in 2022.

Monday's order states that Bodog marketing its sites to anybody in Manitoba as "legitimate, legal, 'safe', or 'trusted'" constitutes a "incorrect and misleading representation," contrary to Canadian law. Moreover, it states the Bodog-related entities, "as operators of unapproved and illegal gambling websites" in Manitoba, have "taken part in tortious conduct by committing the illegal ways tort."

Bodog did not react to a request for comment before this story was released.

The order provided Monday also noted that nobody appeared in court on behalf of the Bodog-related participants, Il Nido Ltd. and Sanctum IP Holdings Ltd. This was regardless of those business being "duly served," the order says.

Offshore sportsbook Bodog is telling consumers that it is leaving the Canadian province of Nova Scotia in early October. Adds "we'll be monitoring your province for regulative modifications."

The only operator that is regulated locally in NS is Atlantic Lottery Corp.'s PRO • LINE. pic.twitter.com/FE8fni0s53

The permanent injunction given by the Manitoba court needs all Bodog-related entities to stop operating in such a way that is available to Manitobans and to cease marketing to individuals in the province. The court is also telling Bodog to put "geo-blocking technology" in place to prevent anybody in Manitoba from accessing the operator's websites.

Whether Bodog abide by the injunction stays to be seen. However, the business has actually taken out of other provinces in the past.

Most significantly, the offshore sportsbook states it no longer accepts gamers from Nova Scotia and Quebec. The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario also just recently contacted media outlets and asked "to stop promoting uncontrolled online betting and sports wagering sites" like Bodog.