If you are from Onatrio and you gamble online, or at land-based casinos, then you’ve more than likely heard of the OLG. This article is a short profile of the organisation, their role and what they offer. 

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) is responsible for the regulation of Ontario’s lotteries, aboriginal casinos, charity casinos, and commercial casinos. It is also responsible for regulating slot machines and horse racing within the province. 

OLG also provides online gaming options through its website OLG.ca where you can play the lottery’s many games online, nationwide lottery games, and sports betting games. There’s even an online casino with a wide range of slots and table games, but more on that later. 

In a nutshell, it’s a one-stop shop for all kinds of gambling-related fun for Ontarians and one of the most trusted sites in the province. 

If you’re not lucky enough to live in Ontario, then you don’t have to miss out on all the fun — just take a look at these alternative online casinos in Canada. 

And for those of you who want to know more about OLG, let’s get started.

HISTORY OF THE OLG

OLG was established in 2000 following the merger of the Ontario Lottery Corporation (OLC) and the Ontario Casino Corporation (OCC). 

The corporation is owned by and reports to the Government of Ontario and employs over 8,000 people throughout the province. 

While OLG in its current form has only existed since the turn of the century, the Ontario Lottery Corporation was founded in 1975 by the local government. Since then, the OLC and now OLG have provided a staggering $55 billion to worthy causes in Ontario. 

Throughout its history, the corporation has evolved to suit the needs of its players with the creation of new games etc. But perhaps the most important development to date was the launch of the PlayOLG website in 2015. The site featured a slew of casino-style games and allowed players to buy and check their lottery tickets online. 

Since then OLG has introduced further games and sports betting options and even launched a mobile app and established a responsible gaming website called playsmart.ca

The original website that was once PlayOLG.ca is now OLG.ca.

ONLINE GAMING AT THE OLG

As we mentioned earlier, players can play online games through the corporation’s website OLG.ca. 

Here you’ll find a huge range of games that cater to all tastes including:

SLOTS 

At the time of writing there are 130 video slots available on the OLG website. 

These include many themed slots such as ‘Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure’, ‘Anchorman’, ‘Wheel of Fortune OnTour’, and ‘Bruce Lee’. There are also several progressive and jackpot slots some of which often have jackpots of over a million dollars. 

TABLE GAMES

OLG has an extensive range of table games including: 

• Roulette
• American Roulette
• Blackjack — six variants (Player’s Suite Blackjack, Blackjack, Zappit Blackjack, Blackjack Blazing 7s, Multi-Hand Blackjack, and Blackjack Poker & Pairs)
• Poker — six variants (Ultimate Texas Hold’em, Fortune Pai Gow Poker, Three Card Poker, Let It Ride, 3 Card Stud, and DJ Wild Poker)
• Baccarat

VIDEO POKER

Players have a choice of four video poker games:

• Game King Video Poker
• Triple Play Video Poker 
• Five Play Video Poker
• Ten Play Video Poker

INSTANT PLAY GAMES

There are around 25 instant play games where you can win cash prizes by completing challenges or achieving specific goals. 

These are good fun to play and rarely require too much skill although there is often a heavy dose of luck involved. 

SPORTS BETTING

While single event sports betting has yet to be launched in Canada, there are still some great parlay and prop wagers options available on OLG.ca. 

Pro.Line — Predict the outcome of 3-6 sporting events and wager from $2 – $100 on the outcome. You can choose any combination of events from the NFL, CFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, American college football and basketball, and North American, South American, European and World Soccer. 

Points spread — Bet on how many points the favourite will beat the underdog by. OLG offers points spread betting on the NFL, CFL, NBA, NHL, and American college football and basketball. 

Props — Also known as proposition bets, props allow you to bet on specific events during a game. For example, the number of goals scored or the player that scores first. A good option if you want to add a little more excitement to a game. 

Pools — This is perhaps the simplest of sports betting games as there are no odds involved. All you need to do is predict the winner for each matchup on your pools card. Any player with the right predictions wins a share in the prize pool. Great for beginners. 

PLAYSMART RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING

OLG has created a responsible gaming program called PlaySmart. It’s an online platform that provides information on all of the games OLG hosts on its website. There are tutorials on how to play certain types of games and detailed explanations of game rules and even some tips on how to stay ahead of the game. 

Most importantly, PlaySmart helps you make good choices about your gaming. It offers tools that allow you to set your budget and limits so you don’t overspend. There are also helpful resources for those who are worried about problem gambling. 

Overall, it seems that OLG takes the issue of problem gambling very seriously and has made every effort to ensure that players have the necessary tools to prevent or deal with the issue. 

FINAL SAY ON THE OLG

As far as government-owned lottery and gaming websites go, OLG.ca is up there with the best. In fact, we’d even go so far as to say that the site would give some commercial online casinos a good run for their money. 

Sure it may not have the extensive range of table games that many online casinos have or live tournament schedules, but for anyone looking for a fun gaming experience in a safe environment, it checks all the boxes.