Illinois, also known as the Prairie State, is home to a wide number of major league sports teams including the NBA’s Chicago Bulls and the MLB’s Chicago Cubs. The state also contains one of America’s tallest buildings, the Sears Tower in Chicago. On top of this, Illinois is home to a flourishing gambling market with a variety of ways for residents to gamble. After several attempts, sports betting is legal and live in the state of Illinois.
Is it legal to bet on sports in Illinois?
Yes, sports betting is legal and live in the state of Illinois. In June, Illinois became the 17th state to legalize sports betting after Governor J.B Pritzker signed Illinois’ gambling expansion bill into law. The gambling package legalized land-based and online sports betting and allowed for the construction of six new land-based casinos and a large casino venue in Chicago.
Illinois’ sports betting market went live in March 2020 with the launch of BetRivers-branded sportsbook at Rivers Casino Des Plaines. The state has yet to outline plans for the launch of online sports betting.
In addition to traditional sports wagering, residents can bet on horse racing and fantasy sports in Illinois.
IL Sports Betting
What sports can I bet on In Illinois?
Residents will be able to bet on a variety of professional and collegiate sporting events such as football, basketball, soccer, hockey, golf, tennis and baseball.
However, under the state’s sports betting laws wagering on collegiate sporting events that are held in the state will be prohibited. The sports leagues will also have the ability to place restrictions on certain types of bets in the state.
Where can I bet on sports in Illinois?
Under the state’s sports betting law, residents and visitors can bet on sports in person at land-based sportsbooks at casinos, racetracks and lottery locations in the state. Online and mobile betting is also permitted under state law.
At the time of writing, the only venue to offer legal sports betting is Rivers Casino Des Plaines. More venues are expected to launch sports betting operations in the coming months.
IL Gambling Options
What else can I bet on in Illinois?
A variety of gambling activities are legal in Illinois, including online lottery games and fantasy sports, betting on horse racing and a number of riverboat casinos. The casinos in Illinois offer a variety of casino games, including:
- Slots
- Blackjack
- Craps
- Roulette
- Poker (Three Card, Ultimate Texas Hold’em)
- Baccarat
There are 10 casinos that operate in the state.
| Casino Name |
Location |
Contact |
Email |
Opening Hours |
| Casino Queen and Hotel |
200 S Front St, East St Louis, IL 62201, USA |
+1 618-874-5000 |
Online form |
Sunday – Wednesday: 8am – 4am
Thursday – Saturday: 8am – 6am |
| Harrah’s Joliet |
151 N Joliet St, Joliet, IL 60432, USA |
+1 815-740-7800 |
Not available |
24 hours |
| Harrah’s Metropolis |
100 E Front St, Metropolis, IL 62960, USA |
+1 618-524-2628 |
Not available |
24 hours |
| Hollywood Casino Aurora |
1 W New York St, Aurora, IL 60506, USA |
+1 630-801-1234 |
[email protected] |
Sunday – Wednesday: 8:30am – 4:30am
Friday – Saturday: 8:30am – 6:30am |
| Grand Victoria Casino Elgin |
250 S Grove Ave, Elgin, IL 60120, USA |
+1 847-468-7000 |
Online form |
Everyday: 8:30am – 6:30am |
| Hollywood Casino Joliet |
777 Hollywood Blvd, Joliet, IL 60436, USA |
+1 888-436-7737 |
[email protected] |
Everyday 7:30am – 5:30am |
| Argosy’s Alton Belle Casino |
1 Piasa St, Alton, IL 62002, USA |
+1 800-711-4263 |
Not available |
Everyday 8am – 6am |
| Rivers Casino |
3000 S River Rd, Des Plaines, IL 60018, USA |
+1 888-307-0777 |
[email protected] |
Everyday 9am – 7am |
| Par-A-Dice Casino |
21 Blackjack Blvd, East Peoria, IL 61611, USA |
+1 309-699-7711 |
Online form |
Sunday – Thursday: 8am – 4am
Friday – Saturday: 8am – 6am |
| Jumer’s Casino and Hotel |
777 Jumer Dr, Rock Island, IL 61201, USA |
+1 800-477-7747 |
[email protected] |
Everyday 7am – 5am |
Are offshore gambling sites legal in Illinois?
The legality of offshore gambling sites in Illinois falls into a grey area. Article 28 of the Illinois Criminal Code appears to prohibit playing poker and wagering games, although it does not specify whether its for online or land-based games. While no one in the state has been prosecuted for online gambling, we recommend steering clear of offshore gambling and sports betting sites. These offshore sites don’t have a license to operate in Illinois, which means they aren’t subject to strict regulatory standards when it comes to protecting vulnerable players or protecting players’ funds.
You can spot offshore gambling sites by looking at the website’s domain name. If you see a domain that ends in .EU or .AG it does not hold a license to operate in Illinois and therefore should be avoided at all costs. If Illinois does choose to regulate sports betting, there could be some legal online sports betting sites available further down the line, which would be much safer than offshore sites.
Responsible Betting in IL
Is it safe to bet on sports in Illinois?
Although Illinois is fairly relaxed in its approach to gambling law and regulation, the state has managed to implement strong and effective gambling regulation. The state regulator has published strict and tight regulations for sports betting to help ensure the activity is fair and safe for bettors. However, it’s also up to punters to gamble responsibly and avoid betting more than they can afford to lose to keep gambling fun. Both the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling and the Illinois Alliance on Problem Gambling have a variety of resources available to help those who suffer from problem gambling and people who have loved ones that may need help. The National Council on Problem Gambling also has a number of resources to help those who suffer from problem gambling.
You can contact the National Council on Problem Gambling via:
Phone: 1-800-522-4700
Text: 1-800-522-4700
online chat
You can contact the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling via:
Phone: 1-217-652-9611
Email: [email protected]
You can contact the Illinois Alliance on Problem Gambling using an online form on its website.
Who regulates gambling in Illinois?
Gambling activity in Illinois is regulated by the Illinois Gaming Board. When it comes to horse racing, the Illinois Racing Board is tasked with overseeing 30 horse racing tracks and off-track betting parlors across the state.
How old do I have to be to gamble in Illinois?
The legal age to play the Illinois state lottery and wager on horse racing is 18, but you must be 21 years old to play casino games.
The journey to legal and regulated sports betting in Illinois
Illinois has yet to legalize sports betting and that state lawmakers are still considering legislation. We will continue to update this page as the situation develops.
1800s – Gambling in the state of Illinois was initially a very small activity but grew throughout the 1800s with an influx of illegal riverboat casinos. These riverboat casinos thrived and many still operate in the state of Illinois to this day.
1927 – The state of Illinois legalized and regulated gambling on horse racing.
1974 – In an attempt to generate some much-needed state funding, Illinois became the first US state to permit a state lottery.
1986 – Illinois passed the Charitable Games Act which permitted charity gambling games under existing lottery legislation.
1991 – The state moved to legalize riverboat casinos. Under the Riverboat Gambling Act, the riverboat casinos in the state were authorized to offer gambling activities as long as the riverboat casinos moved along the river.
1992 – Congress passed the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) prohibiting sports betting across US states. Four states were made exempt from the law: Nevada, Delaware, Oregon and Montana. These states had legal sports betting regulations in place.
1999 – The Riverboat Gambling Act was amended, and riverboats no longer have to travel along the river. This meant riverboat casinos were docked at permanent spots across the state.
2001 – Illinois expanded its lottery offerings and became the first state in the US to offer lottery tickets online.
2009 – Licensed venues were given authorization to install video gambling terminals. However, this was met with criticism from various anti-gambling parties that argued video gambling terminals would hurt local communities where the terminals were installed. On top of this, there was also the perception that permitting video gambling terminals would contribute to social issues such as gambling addiction and higher crime rates. Once the first video gambling terminals had been rolled out some parties argued that the state regulatory body lacked the capacity to oversee the activity.
2011 – The state passed the Casinos Act SB744. This allowed land-based casinos to operate and also permitted race tracks to expand their gambling offerings to patrons.
2018 – In preparation for the Supreme Court’s ruling on the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), January 2018 saw the introduction of the Sport Betting Consumer Protection Act. The bill was sponsored by Senator Steve Stadelman.
On 14 May, the Court reached a decision. In a 7 – 2 vote it was agreed that one of the clauses in PASPA violated the Tenth Amendment, as it commandeered power from states to regulate their own gambling industries. This paved the way for all US states to decide whether or not to legalize sports betting. In the weeks after the repeal of PASPA a number of US sportsbooks launched across the country.
In October 2018, Illinois lawmakers explored the possibility of legalizing sports betting in a sports betting hearing. Although sports betting was not legalized it appeared that lawmakers were intrigued and willing to explore the topic further.
2019 – In July, Governor J.B Pritzker signed Illinois’ gambling expansion bill into law, making Illinois the fifth state to legalize sports betting in 2019. As well as legalizing sports betting, the bill allowed for the launch of six new land-based casinos and a large casino venue in Chicago.
2020 – In March legal sports betting went live in Illinois with the opening of a BetRivers sportsbook at Rivers Casino Des Plaines
For more updates on sports betting in Illinois, Compare.bet has got you covered.
