Start Your Own Sportsbook in Canada

Over the last few years, the sports betting industry has evolved immensely, leaving some surprised about the changes. For example, Canada only allowed parlay bets on sports events until August 2021, when the Canadian government started to allow betting on a single game. So, if you want to start your own sportsbook in the Great White North, now is the time.

Start Your Own Sportsbook Today!

In fact, you will be among the first bookies to benefit from thousands of clients looking to place wagers from worrying about breaking the law and other similar obstacles. According to statistics, the number of people watching a basketball game in Canada has increased by 29 percent. Fortunately, this number grows hand in hand with bettors.

So, if you were to start your own sportsbook today, you would get a significant number of ready players. Take advantage of this guide and learn how to start a sportsbook the right way.

Choose a Sport to Focus On

All prominent sportsbooks offer bets on virtually every sport. They have the money and invest a lot in marketing their services. So, if you have the same amount of money, you can offer bets on all sports.

If you are working with a limited budget, you need to choose a niche. You can pick your favorite sport and offer bets on it. But, you need to consider the money you will earn from offering that service.

Look at your target market and determine what they need. For example, basketball is a popular sport in Canada. So, if you were to offer bets in this category, you would make a lot of money.

Find other betting markets that would sell well in Canada. Also, consider your bankroll and whether you can pay more players when you offer bets on multiple sports.

Some of the markets you can consider offering bets for include National Basketball League (NBA), National Hockey League (NHL), National Football League (NFL), Curling, Formula 1, Horse Racing, Canadian Football League (CFL), and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). These will attract a significant number of bettors, giving you a reason to stay in business.

Get a License

Depending on which province you wish to offer your services to, you can get a specific permit to offer sports betting. For example, if you are in Ontario or Alberta, you can get a license from the respective regulator in that province.

Another way to get an operating license is to host your sportsbook website offshore. Remember, Canadians wagered in offshore sportsbooks before the country could legalize bets on a single game.

The residents still wager in these sportsbooks. So, you will still get your clients even after you host your website elsewhere. You can also avoid all complications by signing up with a pay per head provider and operating under the brand’s license.

Find Enough Funds

You need funds to start your own sportsbook. Some of this money will go to website development, employing various experts, maintaining websites, or paying for different services.

The rest of the money will go to your bankroll. You can ask an existing bookie how much they needed to put in their bankroll. Compare different suggestions from bookies and decide how much you need in your bankroll.

You also need to consider the number of players you will have and the betting markets you will offer. With more betting markets you have, the more clients you will have.

If you run your bookie on a pay per head platform, you need to consider the weekly fees. Ideally, ensure you have enough money to run your business for a few months before you start making significant profits.

Enroll Bettors

Once you start your own sportsbook, you will need clients to wager with you. So, start as early as possible to find clients. While at it, never forget that recruiting clients is an ongoing process.

Some clients will come and go because they are one-time bettors. So, enrolling new clients to replace those leaving is integral.

Bet on your family and friends first. Ask them to honor you by being the first bettors on your platform. In fact, tell them that they play a huge role in determining whether the platform is ready for market or whether it has all the good qualities that bettors want.

Then, you enroll your former classmates, old friends, and a few new colleagues. If you have dedicated some marketing funds, use them in SEO and social media advertising. Create brand awareness so that clients can come to you instead of you seeking them.

Get a Pay Per Head Solution

Choosing a pay per head solution is one of the most crucial steps in starting a sportsbook. The provider of this service can either build or kill your business.

So many sportsbooks have launched and closed for making the mistake of choosing the wrong pay per head provider. Unfortunately, they did not realize their mistakes before running out of money to transfer to another price per head. So, pay extra attention here.

For starters, you need a site that has your back. The agents providing the services should have immense knowledge about running a bookie. Apart from that, they should have sportsbook software designed to make you money and make running a bookie fun and easy.

One of these companies is Power Pay Per Head. Having been in the industry for over 15 years, this company is one of the best price per head providers. Interestingly, the site is run by people who were once bookies, while several others are still bookies.

In other words, these agents are still in the industry and have first-hand experience with bookies. They understand what sportsbook agents need and implement these needs when designing betting websites and software.

Power Pay Per Head also runs the sportsbook on your behalf. So, if you are worried about your experience operating a bookie, you can leave bookmaking responsibilities to the provider.

The site’s sportsbook software is packed with features you will need. For example, it has a report generator, line mover, bet tracker, player management tools, risk management tools, and many others.

Develop the Design and Function of the Betting Site

You have an essential decision to make here. For example, do you want to use a custom sportsbook website or a template?

You need to consider several things before choosing a template or custom sportsbook website. For example, you need to consider your goals and objectives.

In other words, you need to ask yourself why you need one website over the other. Suppose you want to offer your services to a fraternity group. Instead of using a template website, you might need several things related to the fraternity group added to the website.

A customized website is likely to make you more money than templates. Usually, this has several features added according to your players’ preferences.

You need to consider the design and functions that will appeal to your clients and make your bookmaking easier. For example, if your website lacks a sign up button, you would need to create player profiles yourself. This could take a toll on you because you have to be available to create accounts for new clients.

So, remember to have various functions, including sign-up/login buttons, bet slip, transaction system, and bookmaking tool. You can always test the website before launching it to determine whether everything is perfect.

Test the Pay Per Head Sportsbook Website

Here, you can test whether your sportsbook website and software are working correctly. This is where you confirm whether you got what you paid for.

When you work with Power Pay Per Head, you can get a two to six weeks trial period. The site hands over all the rights to you and allows you to log in as a player to test the player’s frontend of the sportsbook. You can also log in as a bookie agent and find all the valuable tools on your dashboard.

Ask several of your clients to log in, deposit, and wager. Ideally, let your clients do as they would if you launched your bookie.
Find out their satisfaction rate, what needs improvement, and overall experience on the platform. If you feel the site is ready, proceed to launch.

Launch Your Sportsbook

The last part on how to start your own sportsbook in Canada is launching it. When everything looks perfect and your soft launch is successful, you can let the world know about your sports betting services.

Take your business online and start taking bets. If possible, launch your bookie before a major season. That way, you can have time to market your services.

Usually, players will start looking for their next bookie several weeks before a season begins. For example, NFL fans find the best sportsbook online several weeks before the first match. Then, they look at what a bookie has to offer and how they will benefit by wagering with it.