A licensed online sportsbook in Ontario, PowerPlay, reportedly considered offering bets on the likelihood of U.S. President Donald Trump annexing Canada but ultimately opted to scrap the idea due to “compliance” concerns.

CBC News reports that the brand was set to post odds on whether the U.S. will annex Canada by the end of Trump’s second term. However, a public relations firm’s representative told the news organization that the proposed unique market was reportedly abandoned due to undisclosed “compliance” concerns.

Canadian Gaming Business reached out to PowerPlay and the PR firm in question, Enterprise Canada, for comment but had not heard back at the time of writing.

Trump has repeatedly suggested making Canada the 51st U.S. state, a suggestion that has been emphatically rebuffed by departing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the heads of Canada’s other political parties.

AGCO says market would be perfectly legal

Although the report suggested that the sportsbook scrapped the proposed betting market due to “compliance” concerns, Ontario’s gambling regulator told us that such wagers are allowed under its regulations as they would fall under the umbrella of “novelty” wagers.

“The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is committed to ensuring that iGaming in Ontario is conducted with honesty, integrity and in the public interest,” the AGCO told Canadian Gaming Business. “All iGaming operators registered in Ontario are required to comply with the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming (the Standards) and Ontario’s Gaming Control Act, (GCA).

“The bet in question would be considered a novelty event, which is permitted in Ontario and defined as: any bet placed on a non-sporting event where real-world factual occurrences are the contingency on which an outcome is determined and in accordance with Standard 4.34.”

The AGCO statement noted that Standard 4.34 lays out specific criteria that sports and event betting must adhere to in order to protect bettors, including that:

• The outcome of the event being bet on can be documented and verified
• There are integrity safeguards in place which are sufficient to mitigate the risk of match-fixing, cheat-at-play, and other illicit activity that might influence the outcome of bet upon events
• The outcome of the event being bet on can be generated by a reliable and independent process
• The outcome of the event being bet on is not affected by any bet placed

As well as those criteria included in the AGCO’s statement to CGB, Standard 4.34 also stipulates that bets cannot be “reasonably objectionable,” defined as including “bets on events which are unethical, allow entertainment to be derived from human suffering or death or involve non-consensual violence or injury.”

Some sportsbooks taking bets on Canadian election

Political betting is a topic du jour in North American gaming right now.

In the U.S., platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket took wagers on the November  election. CBC News notes that Polymarket, for one, is also allowing users to place money on various Canadian scenarios, including whether Canada will become the 51st U.S. state by July 2025.

CBC also reports that PowerPlay had intended to offer odds on the outcome of the federal Liberal leadership contest to replace Trudeau, although it does not specify whether it still intends to do so.

Elsewhere, at least one big-name sportsbook is taking bets on the Ontario provincial election that was triggered by Premier Doug Ford this week. U.S. online sports betting market leader FanDuel was offering odds on the provincial election as of Wednesday evening.