A version of this story appears in the Summer 2025 issue of Canadian Gaming Business magazine.
By Viktor Kayed
Dallas McCready stepped in as the new CEO of the Atlantic Lottery Corporation (ALC) at a landmark time, as the organization finds itself on the brink of its 50-year anniversary in 2026.
The ALC knows there’s still a lot more to offer to the people of Atlantic Canada. Whatever the challenges may be, McCready is ready to lead his team into a “transformative” new chapter for the corporation to build upon the crown corporation’s half-century legacy.
McCready’s career portfolio includes a tenure as Deputy Minister of Strategic Initiatives within New Brunswick’s Executive Council Office. This role gave McCready a crucial know-how in effective governance and strategic planning, two skillsets that would later kickstart his career with the Atlantic Lottery.
In 2022, McCready put pen to paper with the corporation, joining as its Chief Strategy Officer. The now-CEO looks back at the last few years as essential for getting him in gear for what lies ahead.
“It’s been a great experience,” he told Canadian Gaming Business recently. “I was glad to have been part of it for the last few years. It was helpful to be in and learn more about the organization and the people before settling into this new role. Obviously, there’s still some learning to do, but it’s been helpful. We have a wonderful team here.”
Big shoes to fill
McCready’s tenure at the top of the Atlantic Lottery began in January, replacing Patrick Daigle. His predecessor’s guidance was key for the smooth transition, the incumbent CEO was quick to note.
“It’s tough to follow in his shoes. He was here for 27 years. On the day of the announcement, I sent him a text saying ‘I wish you didn’t have such big feet!’ He was very reassuring and comforting on a pretty overwhelming day, as you can imagine. So I really appreciate his support.”
But the shoes are now on, and McCready’s gait shows no signs of shuffling. McCready is ready to protect ALC’s operating space, which he says should be a priority everywhere, whether you’re the only regulated operator or you have a licensed open-market model like in Ontario. To do that, he is focusing on expanding ALC’s market share through a five-year strategy to tackle the grey market, a plan he co-developed during his tenure as a CSO.
“We’re proud of our social purpose and having that game-changing impact on the people and places of Atlantic Canada,” he added. “So for us, it’s really important to capture as much of that market share as we possibly can.
“We’ll never have 100%, of course, and we wouldn’t aspire to that. But we have around a third of the market right now, which is a fairly small percentage when you consider that we’re the only legal operator. Our goal is to get up to around 50% of that share. Our strategy has a lot of key elements that will help us be the first choice for the players of Atlantic Canada.”
“For us, it’s really important to capture as much market share as we possibly can. We’ll never have 100%, of course, and we wouldn’t aspire to that.”
The Atlantic Lottery, which returns 100% of its gaming profits to the four Atlantic provinces, said last year that it loses around $200 million annually to unlicensed gambling sites. It’s an issue cited by other crown corporations across the rest of Canada, and the ALC formed the Canadian Lottery Coalition with several other provincial lotteries. McCready noted a key goal is to advocate for a regulated and safe gambling environment.
“It’s just strength in numbers to a certain extent. We all have a common interest in protecting our markets and the operating space that we have. It’s been helpful in advancing the message and getting some attention from decision makers at the federal level, but also provincially as well.”
The end goal, stressed McCready, is protecting the player.
“It’s more important how we make profits than how much profit we make. Healthy play has to come first and foremost.
The ALC’s growth goes hand-in-hand with an unwavering devotion to healthy play and, as the CEO put it, “our sustainable growth strategy allows us to take market share back.”
Time for a regulated commercial market?
This in turn shifts the playing field, McCready suggested, by placing the focus not on taking more money out of the same wallet but on bringing more wallets into ALC’s system.
This philosophy was infused into the ALC’s launch of regulated iCasino in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador last year. The result, said McCready, has been a market growth built on player trust.
“I’m really proud of how, without a whole lot of marketing, we very quickly repatriated a lot of that play from the unregulated market, which to me shows that people do trust us and our brand, and we should be proud of that.”
The government recognizes that some people are making the decision to play on illegal sites. At some point, we’re hoping they’ll allow us to compete.
The Atlantic Lottery now offers regulated online casino in every Atlantic province other than Prince Edward Island. McCready said that the ALC remains open to the idea of competing with other operators on a level playing field, but that can only come at the discretion of the local government.
“I think the government recognizes that some people are making the decision to play on illegal sites. There are conversations recognizing that activity, and at some point we’re hoping they’ll allow us to compete. But it’s a decision of the policymakers and what they think is best for their people. It’s really not my place to question or challenge that.”
One thing that is for certain is that, like in other provinces, the Atlantic Canada market continues to grow and players continue to look for ways to play. That brings competition with it. With McCready at the helm, the ALC seems ready for the challenge.
“There’s been emerging competition, but at the end of the day, it’ll be our people and their social purpose that make a difference,” he concludes. “We work very hard to operate with as much integrity and transparency as we can to protect the reputation and trust we have built with Atlantic Canadians.”
