MPs Set to Vote on Bill S-211 to Restrict Sports Betting Ads Across Canada
The House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage was scheduled to vote on Bill S-211 in late October, CBC News reported on October 22, 2026. The bill, the National Framework on Sports Betting Advertising Act, would require the Minister of Canadian Heritage to develop a national framework to restrict sports betting advertising across the country.
Sen. Marty Deacon of Ontario introduced the bill in the Senate, which passed it on October 21, 2025, and Waterloo MP Bardish Chagger sponsors it in the House. If the committee approves it, the bill moves to third and final reading in the Commons. Ontario and Alberta have both written to Ottawa to oppose it.
What Bill S-211 Would Require From Ottawa
The bill does not write advertising rules itself. Under its text, the minister’s framework must identify measures to regulate sports betting ads, including “limiting the number, scope or location” of advertisements and limiting or banning the participation of celebrities and athletes in promotion.
It also provides for the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to review whether its own regulations and policies are adequate and effective in reducing harms from the proliferation of sports betting advertising. CBC News described the bill as not prescriptive: it asks the federal government to acknowledge the harms of online gambling and to hold consultations before stricter regulations are drafted. Its scope covers sports betting advertising, and RG.org noted that it does not extend to online casino ads.
Chagger told CBC News she hopes the process eventually leads to bans on gambling promotions on sportswear and during live sporting events, along with limits on ads at certain hours and a prohibition on celebrity and athlete partnerships with gambling companies.
The House voted 291 to 28 on April 22, 2026, to pass the bill at second reading and refer it to the heritage committee.
Support and Opposition Ahead of the Committee Vote
CBC News partnered with the University of Bristol to review seven televised 2026 NHL playoff games featuring Canadian teams. The analysis counted 3,000 gambling messages, and 95 per cent of them carried no information about harm reduction or age restrictions. Lead researcher Raffaello Rossi said ads or logos appeared two to three times every minute, on rinks, jerseys and helmets as well as during commercial breaks.
Chagger linked the proposed limits to growing rates of gambling addiction and suicide deaths in Ontario after the province allowed private online casinos and sports betting in 2022.
Alberta’s Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction, Dale Nally, wrote to the federal government that the bill creates a two-tier regulatory system and threatens future provincial revenues. Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey wrote that the province already has a comprehensive framework for online gaming and sports betting, with advertising standards as a central component, and should be left to regulate ads.
The Canadian Gaming Association, a trade group representing 80 companies, filed a submission opposing national advertising rules and asked that provinces set their own standards. Its submission argued that advertising helps direct consumers toward regulated operators subject to stringent oversight. On the other side, a coalition of a dozen mental health organizations, including the Canadian Mental Health Association and Public Health Physicians of Canada, joined 28 addictions researchers in asking Parliament for national action.
Even if the bill becomes law, any new advertising limits would only follow federal consultations.
