Rootz Enters Canada iGaming as it snatches up the IGA 2023 Slot Operator Award!

Canadians prepare for award-winning online casinos as Rootz enters Canada iGaming via Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) licensing! (Image courtesy of Rootz)

iGaming industry award-winning Rootz operator announced a brand-new venture to open online casinos in Canada via its new Ontario gambling licensing accreditation.

Last night Rootz won the ‘Slots Operator’ of the year award International Gaming Awards 2023 in London. The company was also up for the ‘Online Casino Operator’, ‘Online Gaming Operator’, and ‘Innovator of the Year’ awards but just missed out. And at the same event last year, Rootz won the ‘Innovator of the Year’ award!

The operator is now set to conquer Canada, where it is already the operator of two top online casinos that accept Canadian players via the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) licensing.

Both Wildz Casino and Wheelz Casinos are perfect examples as per our guide covering the best online casinos Canada has to offer via lists with bonuses and full access to casino reviews. You will find both Rootz Wheelz and Wildz casino reviews here too.

On top of its recent award success at yesterday’s ‘International Gaming Awards 2023’Rottz also won gold for ‘Innovation in Casino and Gaming Entertainment’, and silver for the ‘Rising Star in Casino Entertainment’ award at the 2022 SBC Global Awards.

Ontario Canada is in for a treat! Players in Ontario will now have access to casinos coming from yet another multi-award-winning casino operator. Other serial award winners in the market right now also include 888Casino and LeoVegas!

Which Casino Will Rootz Open in Canada?

There is no firm casino brand listed in the official announcement on the Rootz operator’s website. However, we do know that the company plans on taking the same approach as it has with its MGA-licenced online casinos as the news release mentions “access to Rootz family of casinos”.

Its licensing began in January 2023 after fully registering with the Canadian province’s Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and iGaming Ontario (iGO) gambling regulatory authorities.

The move comes soon after Rootz announced its move into the German iGaming market in December last year. And the platform also gained its ISO 27001 Audit Certification last year. With all these new iGaming licences, could the UKGC market be on the operator’s scope?

Is Rootz the next big gun in iGaming? Yet another iGaming licence is sparking what looks to be the beginning of yet another top online casino brand capable of notching up as many awards as LeoVegas and 888Casino!

Is Ontario Canada Big Enough for the Competition?

For the time being, the Ontario iGaming market is seeing immense growth as it is still in its early days. As far as competition is concerned, it will amount to the golden idiom we all know only too well – ‘survival of the fittest!’.

The Rootz ‘family of casinos’ has only been in business since 2019, but boy what an entrance! Its casino brands are already performing well as the operator is already taking down multiple industry awards. There is stiff competition, but the brand comes up against the same competitors in other markets.

Currently, LeoVegas, 888Casino, BetMGM, SkillOnNet Casinos: PlayOJO, Slots Magic, SpinGenie, KnightSlots, DraftKings, and many other top brands from the US and Europe are all competing for business in Canada’s Ontario province.

Ontario Canada Financials: The ‘71% Revenue Increase – Ontario Canada Q4 Betting Market Shows Huge Potential’ news report shows the iGaming market in the province is still growing. We will know more in a year when 2023’s stats come out.

BCLC Updates its Voluntary Self-exclusion (VSE)

Over in the British Columbia gambling zone, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) is also eyeing the possibility of introducing a provincial online gambling licence. It already has a licensing authority in place, but the rules operators and providers follow are not the same for online casinos and betting sites under the AGCO and iGO gambling regulatory authorities.

Right now, one of the key objectives to implement safer and more responsible gambling for its citizens is the implementation of a Voluntary Self-exclusion (VSE) program. This is a system that works much like GamStop, and any online gambling site offering services to players in the region or Canada can sign up.

The program now operates under a new name – Game Break.

Players can self-exclude from online gambling establishments for six months, one-year, two years or three years. However, unlike self-exclusion under GamStop, which is irreversible, there is a pathway back when players decide they do not want to self-exclude anymore. It involves support and a process players will need to follow to reinstate their accounts.

Find out more about Game Break: Canada’s BCLC has a dedicated website where you can find out more information about Game Break via the Voluntary Self-exclusion program webpage here.