The History of Charitable Gambling in Canada
By: Kalli Wilson
Tags: Canada, Nonprofit, Gambling, History, Fundraising

When most people define gambling their description includes a long daunting table in the middle of a dark room. The room is filled with the scent of cigarette smoke and anxiety as large men in black suits cradle their cards against their chest with faces as blank as an empty page of paper. This “old school” image of gambling has been dramatically remodeled over the past couple of decades as the arrival of new games, regulations and online platforms began to gain popularity among players. Society’s idea of gambling has done a complete 360 as an activity that used to seem forbidden and risky has become a pronounced pastime in mainstream culture. So what is gambling and what does this leisure pastime activity actually entail? Gambling can be formally described as the betting or staking of something of value with full awareness of the risk, and hope of gain on the outcome of a game, contest, or an uncertain event. The results of gambling are often determined by chance, skill, contest or a combination of all three.

Long before John Cabot stepped foot on Canadian soil in 1497, gambling was a popular pastime among Canadian indigenous peoples who had been using gaming sticks and bones for centuries. The game they played was called ‘Slahal’ and was said to help their physical, mental and spiritual growth. Most frequently enjoyed by the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast, Shahal dates back to long before the arrival of Europeans and the decks of playing cards they had with them. The Indigenous community viewed Shahal and other forms of gambling as an entertaining family pastime, a sacred ritual and a way to increase one’s economic gain. European settlement brought a much more conservative approach to gambling. Although many forms of gambling were deemed as “legal”, up until the 1950’s betting was seen as a vice and was frowned upon by North American society. It wasn’t until 1989 that the first commercial casino in Canada opened up in Winnipeg which was quickly accompanied by another casino opening in Montreal in 1993.

Over the past 80 years, gambling in Canada has shifted from an activity that was only socially tolerated by select groups to a broadly accepted leisure activity. Since its original enactment in 1892, the Canadian Criminal Code (following the English Common Law) has tolerated gambling under certain conditions. Gaming laws, although amended multiple times, have remained relatively unchanged until 1985 when substantial changes were made to the Criminal Code that gave the provinces authority to license and regulate gambling (with a few exceptions).

These jurisdictional changes resulted in the formation of a multi-billion dollar gambling industry. Currently, the provincial governments are solely responsible for operating lotteries, most of which are frequently used by charities and non-profit organizations for fundraising purposes. Raffles and bingos are two of the most popular forms of gambling used by the non-profit industry for raising money. A raffle consists of a large group of people buying tickets for a chance to win a prize. In the case of a 50/50 raffle, such as the ones facilitated by The Lotto Factory, the prize is 50% of the money raised from ticket sales and the other 50% is retained by the organization to put towards their cause and handle administrative fees. Generally, an individual can purchase more than one ticket and each ticket purchase is equivalent to one entry into the draw for a chance to win the grand prize.

Raffles are very similar to lotteries in that they both have the same three fundamental elements. There is always a fee (money is being paid for tickets), the prize has a monetary value and the winner is determined by chance. Canadian Federal legislation allows charitable organizations to hold raffles and fundraisers but the specific legal requirements vary by province. Raffle law is managed by three different organizations including the Criminal Code of Canada, the Competition Bureau of Canada and local municipalities.

Lottery Quebec was the first Canadian corporation to deliver this type of lottery/fundraiser in 1969. The lottery didn’t start to gain popularity until 1973 when planning and fundraising for the 1976 Montreal Olympics began. The city of Montreal endured plenty of extra expenses when preparing for the arrival of the Olympics and in order to combat these costly events, The Olympic Act was created and passed in 1973 which allowed Quebec and the Olympic Games Organizing Committee to sell tickets in any province as long as they received that provincial government’s approval. All of the funds raised had to be put towards the 1976 Olympics or the development of amateur sports in the contributing provinces.

The lottery and gambling situation in Canada today is much more evenly distributed and regulated provincially. There are 3 major lotteries that are run nationwide including Lotto 6/49, Lotto Super 7 and Lotto Max as well as a number of provincial draws. All of these games are required to benefit public or civil causes and they have all experienced tremendous success with the record prize of all time valued at $64 billion for Lotto 6/49.

The online gambling movement that occurred throughout the early 2000s introduced these once closely monitored activities into mainstream society which has continued to shift the way gambling is viewed in the public eye. Online gambling has allowed multiple companies and organizations to host regulated and even semi-professional games that are more accessible to a wider audience of players. The non-profit and charity sector has only recently started to take advantage of this universally available platform. Utilizing online gaming and fundraising software could have a profound impact on the amount of money that these organizations are able to raise. Software as a service (SaaS) companies, such as The Lotto Factory, are working with charities and nonprofits to assist them while they make the transition to online fundraising.

The history of gambling and lotteries in Canada underwent a long and complicated journey to arrive at where it is today. The way society labels gambling and the regulations surrounding it are likely to continue to progress as new technology such as online gaming continues to gain popularity among players. It is extremely important now more than ever for this industry to adapt to the new way of gambling in order to reach more players and gain traction in this continuously expanding market.

References

Gambling. (n.d.). Retrieved July 09, 2020, from https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/gambling

Canada’s Lottery History In Review. (n.d.). Retrieved July 09, 2020, from https://www.gamingpost.ca/canadian-lottery-news/the-history-of-lotteries-in-canada/