Sports betting landscape in Illinois

Ever since the United States Supreme Court struck down the previous federal law passed in 1992 that effectively barred commercial sports betting in the country, passing down the responsibility to each individual state to decide the legality of sports betting within their own jurisdictions, every state that has litigated to allow sports betting within their borders has seen a new lucrative market sprout up from their decision.

Just over a year after the Supreme Court's decision to repeal the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, SB 690 reached the desks of the Illinois Senate after it passed dissection from the House. On June 2, 2019, the Senate voted in an overwhelming majority to allow sports betting both online and in retail settings for all Illinoisans over the legal age.

Representative Mike Zalewski, then, one of SB 690's open advocators, said: "Today is the culmination of a tremendous amount of hard work, determination, and teamwork behind a vision for entertainment and economic opportunity in Illinois."

With SB 690 inked into Illinois history, the state worked quickly to launch sports betting into action, and did so just ahead of March Madness 2020, setting up a potential boom for their new industry.

Even with Covid-19 suspending many wagerable sports for the foreseeable future, sportsbooks were still able to bring in over $125 million in revenue in 2020 and saw exponential growth from that point on.

According to data provided by IL Betting, In 2021, that number grew to $525 million. Then, in 2022, with nearly all pandemic restrictions lifted, the sports betting industry pulled in $795 million. With Illinois's 15 percent tax rate on sports betting revenue, the state received over $119 million from that 2022 revenue according to Pantagraph.

As of 2023, Illinois reached top-5 status as a sports betting state, hitting a handle of over $1 billion for the fourth month in a row in January. There is still even more potential growth in this market, as the state is considering the idea of allowing exchange sports betting, which would legalize direct wagers on events between two individuals.

For now, though, residents of Illinois will have to settle for placing their bets either online through various internet sportsbooks or in person at a multitude of different brick-and-mortar handlers.

Between BetMGM, PointsBet, DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars Sportsbooks, or any of the other apps that ventured into Illinois, bettors have no shortage of options for casting their wagers online.

These bookies allow for bets to be placed on multiple different sports such as the NFL, NBA, MLB among many others.

Those that prefer to place their bets in person don't need to worry, as there are plenty of casinos in the state as well, stretching as far north as Des Plaines and as far south as Collinsville.

Most of the brick-and-mortar sportsbooks in Illinois are centered around the Chicago area, but the majority of Illinoisans are just a short drive away from wagering on sports in person.

Between the Hollywood Casino Joliet, Penalty Box, and the new Barstool Sportsbook at Ameristar East, there are plenty of different options for residents to choose from.

It's clear that sports betting has been a lucrative industry in Illinois for both marketers who have opened up their service in the state, as well as the state itself via its tax rate on those profits.

States that are still considering opening their borders to sportsbooks need only to look at Illinois to see the positive financial gain from this venture.