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Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario Bans UFC Betting

Suspicious Betting Activity from Recent UFC Event Causes Drastic Change in Ontario’s Betting Landscape


UFC Bets Banned in Ontario

In a shocking turn of events on Friday afternoon, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario has ordered all private sportsbooks operating within the province to stop taking UFC wagers. This breaking news comes in the aftermath of suspicious betting activity that transpired on a UFC bout that took place in early November of this year.

To protect themselves from any further tampering or fixing of sporting events, governing bodies within the province have decided to ban all bets on one of the most popular sport leagues in the world. This move was attributed to “concerns around non-compliance and betting integrity” within the organization.

With bets no longer being taken within Ontario, fight fans of the Great White North will now longer be able to wager on the UFC through online bookmakers.

Why are UFC Bets Banned in Ontario?

A move as drastic as this is not made in haste, this ban was instated after a dubious looking situation surrounding one of the UFCs most well-regarded coaches and former fighter James Krause. Krause was a fighter within the UFC from 2013 to 2020 who quickly and successfully transitioned to coaching shortly after stepping away from competing himself.

Krause has coached some of the big names in the UFC and helped many of them reach new heights in their careers as a result of his tutelage. Not only was he involved heavily in the fight game from a hands-on perspective, he also is an avid UFC handicapper.

Hosting his own podcast “The 1% Club”, Krause would provide his listeners with betting advice and picks on every fight card that weekend. With continued success many began to sing praises for Krause’s many accomplishments but this has all taken a turn for the worse after a fight involving Krause is now under investigation for suspicious activity.

In a recent UFC Fight Night event, Krause cornered one of his fighters, Darrick Minner, a UFC veteran in his own right who was entering the bout riding a two fight losing streak. Rightfully opening as the underdog, the lines made a sudden jump before the fight was set to take place with his opponent Shayilan Nuerdanbieke, surging even higher as a favourite.

This major line movement was caused due to a surging increase in bets being placed against Minner. In the short lived bout, Minner would be finished via knockout in the first minute of the opening round. Later it would be revealed that Minner was dealing with a “serious leg injury” that jeopardized his standing in the matchup.

With details of this injury seemingly being leaked out unbeknownst to the UFC and oddsmakers, an investigation was launched to see if there was any foul play at hand in the fight. Since this occurred the UFC has gone back on their stance allowing fighters and coaches to wager on bouts to prevent something such as this from happening again.

While it is still yet to be proven that there was some form of unethical collusion taking place in this fight, the evidence certainly is beginning to pile up against Krause and his fighter. Due to this unusual circumstance, the AGCO has taken preemptive measures to prevent this from happening again, leading to the ban of UFC betting within Ontario.

What Does this Mean for Ontario Bettors?

Until the UFC is able to demonstrate they can regulate and control unseemly activities from transpiring within their organization, betting on the UFC will be on hold within the province. This comes to the dismay of many Ontario-based bettors as the UFC was a wildly popular sporting event for fans to wager on.

There are still several other MMA organizations that provide betting odds & lines within the province, but none are close to rivaling the size and popularity of the UFC.

A potential silver lining to this change is that it may not be forever. The AGCO has stated that once remedial steps have been taken, oddsmakers will be given the chance to provide information proving that UFC bets meet their established standards. This would then result in Ontario bettors being able to once again place bets on the UFC.

While it’s a tough pill to swallow for several Ontario bettors, there are still several fantastic betting options available in the province. Check out our latest sports betting news for expert betting analysis, and be sure to follow us @cdnbetting on Twitter for more updates in the Canadian Sports Betting landscape.


Matt Eichhorn

Matt Eichhorn

Having worked in the Sports Gambling industry since 2020, Eichhorn has expertise in all things sports betting. With experience covering various major North American sports leagues he has a wide array of knowledge to draw from when crafting his work.