It is 2020 and we are currently looking at sportsbook legalization happening all over the country and Illinois is not an exception to this phenomena. This just got a bit more complicated but as it turns out the end result is a constructive one. The law regarding the Illinois sports gambling, for at least the first 18 months, customers have to complete the online registration process in person at a casino. But in June, the governor J.B.Pritzker suspended that requirement because of the pandemic. Then the next month in July he went on to reinstate the requirement claiming that he was not aware that the casinos needed it. He issued several regulations regarding the corona virus situation, amongst which the one regarding the casino registration. This means that the residents of Illinois can sign up online starting with July to at least September 19th. With covid-19 cases on the rise and restrictions being imposed, Pritzker faced growing public pressure to eliminate what is a totally unnecessary visit to a casino or as it could be noticed, to a casino parking lot.
The latest political order is the result of the entire state, but it is also fair to say that operators have had their share of influence on Pritzker’s gambling actions and the sports betting laws in particular. The DraftKings CEO Jason Robbins sent out a tweet about the Illinois sports gambling situation stating the following: “Feels so good to be taking mobile registrations in Illinois, especially after the corrupt idiots at Rush Street Gaming tried to block us in the state. Over the long run, good policy always wins. I commend JBPritzker for doing what’s right for the citizens of Illinois!”.
Rush Street’s author Matt Waters came out with the comment: “Rush Street has never been asked to leave a state, pays taxes on every wager and has not been named in multiple consumer class actions suits”. With the online competition in place, the scenario of more competition to be dealt with due to the launch of both PointsBet and FanDuel seem imminent. In a website page belonging to FanDuel’s casino it was stated that players in order to finish their online registration process will still need to be present at the Par-A-Dice casino to seal the deal.
The co-branded logo suggested that they will share the name in order to launch in state. The page stating these facts is now long but as gambling fans state it is not forgotten. Therefore as things stand currently you should be able to register using only the online platform, but things will be settled by the end of 2020. So if you are a gambling, always be up to date regarding the development on the gambling scene and with the latest news.
