Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s executive order suspending mandatory in-person registration at Illinois sportsbooks has been extended through Oct. 17, according to a sports betting industry insider. The order means Illinois sports bettors will be able to register for accounts online until at least that date.
Gov. Pritzker today suspended the state's in-person registration requirement for online #sportsbetting through 10/17. pic.twitter.com/xEzWkXzy8t
— Chris Krafcik (@CKrafcik) September 18, 2020
Pritzker’s executive order [PDF], first issued June 4 in response to the coronavirus pandemic, temporarily allowed Illinois sports bettors to register for accounts online or via mobile device. In July, he allowed the portion of the order allowing remote registration to expire, which once again required sports bettors to visit an Illinois casino in person to register for an account.
At the time, we reached out to Pritzker’s office for comment. A spokesperson for the governor, said there was “no longer a need” to suspend mandatory in-person registration because Illinois casinos had reopened for business.
After some pushback, including a DraftKings-backed email campaign called Fans For The Future, the governor’s office again reinstated mobile sports betting registration in Illinois, this time through Sept. 19, at which time the order was set to expire.
Emails to the governor’s office were not immediately returned. It was not immediately known whether the order will be extended beyond Oct. 17.
Illinois’ Sports Betting Landscape So Far
Illinois first legalized sports betting in June 2019, with the first legal wager placed in the state in March 2020, just as the coronavirus pandemic was closing casinos coast-to-coast.
So far, five sportsbook operators have set up shop in the Land of Lincoln with the following land casino partners:
- BetRivers (Rivers Casino, Des Plains)
- DraftKings (DraftKings at Casino Queen, East St. Louis)
- FanDuel (Par-A-Dice Casino, East Peoria)
- Penn National (Argosy Casino, Alton; Hollywood Aurora; Hollywood Joliet)
- William Hill (Grand Victoria, Elgin)
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