Help us ban the advertising that fuels gambling addiction in Canada. Bill S‑211 — a national framework on sports-betting ads — has passed the Senate and second reading in the House of Commons. Committee hearings and final votes come this fall.
The fastest way to make a difference is to persuade Parliament — and to help keep this volunteer campaign running.
We find your MP and draft a letter urging support for Bill S‑211. Review it, edit it, send it — all from this page.
Write your MPWe're volunteer-led and take no money from the gambling industry. Your donation helps us maintain our website, publicize the campaign, and keep making the case to Canada's elected officials.
DonateWe're calling on Canada's elected officials to protect the young and other vulnerable people, families, athletes, and fans. Enter your postal code — we'll find your MP and draft a letter you can review, edit and send, all on this page.
Join Canadians from coast to coast to coast urging Parliament to pass Bill S‑211.
On TV. In sports arenas. Online. In social media. Even on public transit. They are designed to make betting normal, harmless and exciting. They target the young and the vulnerable. They're fuelling a public-health crisis we can no longer ignore.
More than a generation ago, we banned ads that promoted tobacco. It's time to do the same for gambling.
The Campaign to Ban Ads for Gambling is calling on the federal government to set real, national limits on sports-betting advertising — and ultimately to ban it the way Canada banned ads for tobacco and cannabis.
Our approach is step by step: first, pass Bill S‑211 to rein in sports-betting ads — the most aggressive corner of the market — then work to ban all gambling advertising.
Tell your MPGambling addiction damages health, relationships, and finances. Every ad increases the risk — and the people closest to a problem gambler bear it too.
When gambling becomes a problem, it can result in lower self-esteem, anxiety, depression, runaway debt, family breakup, domestic abuse, substance abuse, the abuse of athletes who are the subjects of betting, and suicide.
High-risk problem gambling is linked to other forms of addiction, including alcohol and cannabis dependency.
Gambling addiction is recognized as a non-substance-related addictive disorder. Like drugs and alcohol, gambling activates the brain's dopamine system — the "reward" pathway that fuels the cycle of addiction.
Sports-betting advertising is engineered to be a cue. Bright, constant, impossible to avoid — exactly the conditions that drive cravings and relapse. A systematic review of 166 studies1, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, found that "responsible gambling" warnings do not reduce harm.
The youngest brains are the most vulnerable. Underage gambling can start as young as 9 or 10 years old2.
Read the full case →An Act respecting a national framework on sports betting advertising passed third reading in the Senate on October 21, 2025. It passed second reading in the House of Commons on April 22, 2026, by a large majority that included Prime Minister Carney. What remains are committee hearings and final votes. Since Parliament has now been adjourned for the summer, the hearings and votes will be held in the fall. Please write your MP to request that they follow through to ensure that Bill S‑211 becomes law.
Where the campaign and the wider movement stand right now.
Bill S‑211 passed the Senate in October 2025 and second reading in the House on April 22, 2026, by a large majority. Final votes come this fall. It would set Canada's first national rules on sports-betting advertising.
Read about the bill →Earlier this year, MPP Lee Fairclough put forward a bill that would have banned all online gambling advertising in Ontario. Although it was supported by all three opposition parties, the Ford Government voted it down.
Ontario context →The Canadian Mental Health Association's public-service campaign confronts the normalization of betting in sport — including around the 2026 World Cup.
Visit the campaign →"Gambling ads are insulting to the audience, bad for children and youth, and they demean sports and its integrity."
"When governments use gambling to extract money from citizens, you know civilization is in decline."
"Why gamble on their future? Let's do something about it now."
"The damage done to young people is immeasurable."
"This is in complete disregard to the evidence available showing the harmful effects — primarily on young people. Shame on the government systems allowing it."
"The ads we see permeate every phone and every television screen across the country. This is a problem that is not going to get better on its own."
An Angus Reid Institute survey (May 2026) found Canadians deeply uneasy about the growth of sports betting — with the volume of advertising a leading driver of concern.
The Campaign to Ban Ads for Gambling is guided by a group of respected Canadians from sport, public health, media, and community leadership: Alan Broadbent, Robin Campbell, Peter Donnelly, Joel Finlay, Janice Forsyth, Sam Hill, Gretchen Kerr, Bruce Kidd, John Macfarlane, Ian Morrison, and Karl Subban.
Meet the group →Behind every addiction statistic is a real person, a real family. Help us change those numbers. Sign the letter and share our message to ban gambling ads today.