How to Drive Betting Traffic in Canada

Canada is more than just hockey and maple syrup. It’s also a highly promising Tier 1 GEO with strong purchasing power, a sizable population, and a well-established sports culture. Additionally, sports betting in Canada is legal in most provinces. According to Statista, the online betting market in Canada is projected to generate $1.12 billion in revenue by 2025.

While Canada may seem like the ideal region for affiliate marketing, its greatest advantage is also its biggest challenge — high competition. This often discourages arbitrage specialists from targeting this GEO. To save you time on researching the nuances of affiliate marketing in Canada, the 888STARZ Partners team has put together a guide on how to drive traffic to betting offers in this premium region.

General characteristics of Canada as a GEO

First and foremost, it’s worth noting that Canada currently ranks among the top 20 countries in terms of average salary and GDP per capita. This results in high payouts for leads from this region, making Canada a promising GEO for betting offers.

Additionally, according to Statista, as of 2024, 95.5% of users in Canada access the internet via smartphones. The most frequently visited platforms include WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

Another notable aspect of this GEO is its deeply rooted sports culture. Betting and Gambling in Canada are not viewed negatively. Many locals enthusiastically attend hockey games and other events tied to winter and even summer sports, passionately supporting their favorite teams and regularly placing bets. These factors collectively make Canada one of the top regions for generating traffic to betting offers.

“Canada is a Tier-1 GEO and a priority for 888STARZ, but entering it is challenging due to high bids and competition. We have betting and casino cases with ROI around 25–35%, but campaigns require large budgets and careful preparation. Canadian players have high purchasing power, so each FTD is more expensive, but the lifetime value of the client is higher as well”.

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Popularity of hockey in Canada in 2024 (by province)
Source: Statista

Strategies for promoting sports betting in Canada

Now that we’ve outlined the general characteristics of Canada as a GEO, let’s move on to the most exciting part — effective promotion strategies.

Understanding the local population

There are plenty of stereotypical statements online about the residents of the land of the maple leaf. However, it’s safe to say that Canadians aren’t vastly different from their neighbors in the U.S. — though, of course, they do have their own unique cultural flavor.

“Canadian betting is a whole different story. Clickbait like ‘earn fast’ doesn’t work — Canadians won’t bite. You need to focus on sports culture: hockey, football, NFL”.

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Affiliates highlight the following traits of Canada’s GEO when launching advertising campaigns:

• Languages

Canada has not one but two official languages — English and French. While most Canadians, especially younger generations, primarily speak English, French remains popular in certain provinces. This is an important factor to consider when creating ad creatives and marketing materials to capture a broader target audience for your offer;

• Currency

The official currency is the Canadian dollar (CAD), but the US dollar is also accepted, albeit to a much lesser extent. This ensures that payment issues are minimal, as Canadians can place bets in USD when necessary;

“When launching a test campaign in Canada, it’s best to target evening hours local time, coinciding with sports broadcasts. The main devices are mobile, with iOS and Android roughly evenly split. The test budget should be at least $1,000 to ensure representative data. Creatives should be localized, mentioning sports or cities to increase trust”.

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• Lifestyle

Thanks to the country’s affluent population, Canadians don’t view sports betting as a way to make quick money or get rich. For them, betting is more about the experience and excitement. For this reason, don’t use approaches suited for lower-income countries like India or African nations. Instead, emphasize leisure and vivid emotions in your creatives rather than quick financial gains;

• Interest in sports

Canadians are passionate about winter sports, especially hockey. Locals often attend sporting events with their families or watch live broadcasts, frequently placing bets as part of the experience. To leverage this, use the Canadian flag, local teams, and famous athletes in your creatives. Highlight popular disciplines like hockey, curling, and figure skating;

“The typical Canadian bettor is a man aged 25–40 with average or above-average income, interested in sports — primarily hockey and basketball — and often plays on mobile. In French-speaking regions, the audience is slightly older and more conservative in offer selection”.

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• Targeting

According to MadeInCa, the most financially capable demographic is men aged 25 to 45. Focus your targeting on this audience and tailor your creatives to their interests within this age range;

• Tolerance

Canada is known as one of the most tolerant countries in the world, where people avoid discussing personal matters like housing or income. The country is also home to various subcultures and social movements. To ensure your ads resonate with a broader audience, including different social groups, it’s best to keep your creatives neutral and inclusive.

If you need unique and high-converting creatives with a Canadian twist for betting affiliate marketing, contact your personal 888STARZ Partners manager. They’ll provide you with ready-to-use promotional materials tailored to your request.

Is sports betting legal in Canada

While Canada takes a relatively liberal stance toward iGaming, the sports betting vertical is regulated by laws that vary across provinces. Below is a list of provinces where online casinos and sports betting is allowed:

1. Alberta. Players and sports enthusiasts can place bets through licensed private operators or platforms like TSN Sports Betting;
2. Atlantic Canada. (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador): Sports betting is permitted but limited to lottery commissions;
3. British Columbia. Players in this province can place bets on PlayNow website, operated by the British Columbia Lottery Corporation;
4. Manitoba. All forms of Gambling, including Betting, are regulated by the local government, and bets can be placed on PlayNow;
5. Ontario. Betting here is allowed, but using famous athletes’ faces in advertising is prohibited;
6. Quebec. The province’s betting market is monopolized by Loto-Quebec, which oversees both online and physical betting operations;
7. Saskatchewan. Betting and gambling traffic are permitted in this province.

“Formally, a license is required to operate legally in Canada, particularly in Ontario where a local regulator is active. In practice, however, most affiliates run without one — using gray and semi‑gray schemes and directing traffic straight to offers that accept Canadian players”.

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Top traffic sources for driving traffic

Now that we’ve learned more about the Canadian population and the legislative aspects of betting regulation, it’s time to move on to the top traffic sources.

The most frequently used platforms in Canada include the following:

Facebook

According to MadeInCa, there are 29.44 million active Facebook users in Canada, making it the country’s leading social network. This large audience is ideal for launching betting ad campaigns. Additionally, you might consider other Meta platforms, such as WhatsApp, which has a local user base of 9.1 million.

You can target specific audiences by tailoring your ads and purchasing advertising in niche groups to engage users deeply interested in sports betting. Moreover, interacting with your audience frequently will help increase engagement.

“In betting, hockey truly dominates — it’s the national sport and the most stable traffic source. However, other sports like American football, basketball, and tennis also perform well. Soccer has a smaller reach, but in certain provinces, it delivers results too”.

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Instagram

Instagram boasts over 19.7 million users among Canadians, making it another great traffic source for betting campaigns, albeit with some nuances.

On Instagram, avoid overtly showcasing luxury and the wealth of successful bettors. Instead, focus on creative content with patriotic undertones, highlighting sporting events and tapping into national pride and the locals’ love for sports.

“In Tier-1 GEOs like Canada, Facebook/Meta and Google Ads convert best, though moderation is very strict. TikTok shows potential, especially with younger bettors. Push traffic works only with careful delivery, and native networks also perform well”.

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YouTube

YouTube is Canada’s second-most popular website after Facebook, with an audience of 33.1 million users. However, you can’t rely on traditional ads with images and text here, so that’s why video creatives are a must.

On YouTube, pre-roll ads and mid-roll video ads work effectively. To drive traffic to Betting offers, consider creating relevant content, such as sports team reviews or match predictions.

“In creatives, focusing on local teams and championships works best — Canadians appreciate it when you speak their sports language. In Canada it’s important to consider bilingualism. In English-speaking regions, creatives with humor, sports memes, and a focus on live betting perform well. In French-speaking areas like Quebec, localized French creatives, especially those highlighting promotions and bonuses, work best”.

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With 888STARZ Partners, you’ll have access to ready-to-use mobile apps for driving traffic. Our experienced development team creates high-quality, engaging mobile apps for iOS, Android, and PWA platforms, customized to your requirements and optimized for over 100 GEOs across Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 markets.

How to drive traffic to Canada: basic tips

It’s important to understand that due to high lead payouts, Canada attracts a significant number of affiliate specialists. Additionally, not only solo webmasters, but entire affiliate teams are active in this GEO, resulting in intense competition. To keep up, here are a few tips to ensure your ad campaigns remain competitive in this Tier 1 market:

Analyze your competitors

Start by studying your competition. Often, they use proven, high-converting strategies. Using spy tools, you can uncover their promotion methods and adapt the most effective ones for your betting campaigns. However, don’t blindly copy their creatives and strategies, as this can lead to generic ads that fail to convert. Instead, take inspiration from how others target Canada while developing unique and engaging promotional materials tailored to your audience.

“Canada isn’t the best option for beginners in betting arbitrage due to high costs and strict moderation. For starting out, Tier-2 and Tier-3 GEOs are preferable. However, if a partner wants to enter Tier-1, 888STARZ provides guidance, creatives, and analytics for this market”.

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Optimize your ad campaigns

Regular campaign optimization is another crucial step. While in less competitive GEOs like Tier 2 or Tier 3, one or two optimizations might suffice for the entire campaign, in Canada, you’ll need to optimize much more frequently. Test your creatives, disable underperforming banners, and scale your campaign across multiple traffic sources to avoid significant losses and stay profitable.

“The average ROI in Canada is around 20–35%. CPI is high, ranging from $5 to $15. Conversion from install to registration is 25–40%, and from registration to deposit is 5–10%. In Canada, the most effective funnels are live betting on hockey and basketball, as well as promotions like ‘risk-free bet’ and ‘deposit + bonus.’ Influencer collaborations on TikTok and YouTube, showing live gameplay and placing bets in real time, also perform well”.

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Improve your landing pages

Even experienced webmasters often wonder, “how to drive traffic to your website”, especially while working with GEO Canada. A well-designed landing page is key to the success of your campaign. The better it performs, the fewer potential leads you’ll lose. Consider using postback tracking to monitor user actions on your landing page and optimize accordingly. Improve loading speeds by compressing images, removing unnecessary elements, and refining the code.

Additionally, focus on creating eye-catching visuals with well-placed attention blocks and a strong, motivational Call to Action (CTA). This will capture the interest of more leads and increase the likelihood of conversions.

“The main challenges in Canada are strict moderation on Facebook and Google, high traffic costs, and the need to adapt content for a bilingual audience. Occasionally, fraud issues arise from publishers, particularly in gray traffic sources”.

888STARZ Partners affiliate

Conclusion

It’s clear that Canada is a rather specific GEO for promotion, especially for novice webmasters. However, if you adopt the right traffic marketing strategy for betting offers, make appealing creatives, regularly optimize your campaigns, and continuously aim to improve metrics, this GEO can deliver a high volume of valuable and profitable leads.

If you’re still searching for new opportunities to generate traffic to Betting and Gambling offers in top-tier markets, we’ve got great news for you. At 888STARZ Partners, we work with over 100 GEOs, each offering a range of high-converting offers. Contact your personal manager today to get a full list of profitable deals and the best market conditions for driving traffic to iGaming!