Ontario Opens Niagara Casino Market, Capped at 3 New Operators

^{Ontario and OLG launched a Call for Investment on Oct. 28 for new Niagara casinos, with a $1.5 billion minimum investment and a $100 million entrance fee. (Image: Vlad Ghiea/Alamy)}

The Ontario government and Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) launched a Call for Investment on Oct. 28 to bring up to three new casino operators to the Niagara Region.

The call is the first phase of a process the province says will create Ontario’s first competitive land-based gaming market.

In Niagara Falls, both land-based casinos are currently run by a single company.

The province said the call will enable more than $3 billion in direct gaming investment and more than $600 million in additional private-sector investment across its Destination Niagara Strategy over the next 20 years.

It also projects more than 10,000 construction jobs.

The Cost of Entry

Each new operator will have to invest at least $1.5 billion and pay a $100 million entrance fee, according to the Ontario government’s news release.

The province will introduce a gaming tax rate of 9.75% for Niagara gaming operators.

It said it will also set up a new gaming framework that reduces the burden on operators, focuses expansion on “top-tier, world-class operators” and keeps requirements that protect the public interest.

The province says each operator’s $100 million entrance fee, plus added economic activity, should make up for any provincial revenue lost because MGE Niagara Entertainment Inc. (MGE), OLG’s Niagara-area service provider, has agreed to suspend its exclusive right to run casinos in the region.

A Dec. 3 Deadline and a Cap of 3

The first phase invites experienced gaming operators to express interest, and shortlisted proponents will advance to a competitive process to submit detailed proposals for integrated casino developments.

Responses to phase one are due Dec. 3, 2026, and the opportunity is listed on MERX.

OLG has hired a fairness monitor to provide oversight and advice throughout the procurement. 

The market will initially be open to a maximum of three new operators.

It could expand after a 10-year fixed term, subject to measures of market maturity, including tourism and overall operator performance.

The call covers land-based casinos only, and online gambling in Ontario continues under its separate regulated market.

Niagara’s Casino Market Today

The call follows an Aug. 13 agreement between OLG and MGE to suspend MGE’s exclusivity rights to the Niagara land-based gaming market.

MGE will keep operating Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara on behalf of OLG, according to the Aug. 13 announcement.

Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati had already urged the province to expand the casino market in October 2024.

The province says Niagara’s casinos draw more than 5 million visitors a year and generate more than $500 million in annual gaming revenue.

Since 1996, OLG has provided more than $256 million to the City of Niagara Falls for hosting Fallsview and Casino Niagara, according to the release.

The Destination Niagara Strategy sets out to double tourism to more than 25 million annual visitors, generate $3 billion a year for Ontario’s GDP and create about 46,500 permanent jobs.

Who Runs Niagara’s Casinos Now

MGE is a subsidiary of Mohegan, the Connecticut-based gaming company that operates Fallsview Casino Resort and Casino Niagara.

Mohegan reported lower results from its International Resorts segment in its fiscal third quarter ended June 30.

Segment revenue fell 11% to US$66.8 million, according to the company’s Aug. 13 earnings release.

Adjusted EBITDA, a measure of earnings that leaves out interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and certain other items, dropped to US$2.2 million from US$5.2 million a year earlier.

Mohegan attributed the decline primarily to lower gaming revenue from an adverse swing in table hold.

On a table hold normalized basis, adjusted EBITDA fell by about US$300,000, the release said.