Illinois Gaming Board Administrator Marcus Fruchter renewed seven sports betting licenses for retail sportsbooks Thursday, the first such renewals since in the state since operators began taking wagers in March 2020.
Fruchter, using the expanded powers delegated to him following the COVID-19 pandemic and since renewed on an annual basis, granted four-year license renewals through June 2028 to the following casinos: Argosy Casino Alton, DraftKings at Casino Queen in East St. Louis, Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin, Hollywood Casino Aurora, Hollywood Casino Joliet, Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, and Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino in East Peoria.
Retail sports betting has generated $1.12 billion in total handle in Illinois, including $105 million through the first three months of 2024. Operators have attained a collective 8.9% hold in 46 months of accepting wagers and claimed $99.5 million in adjusted gross sports betting revenue.
Illinois has 15 overall retail sports betting locations, with the DraftKings at Wrigley Field the most recent venue to open in March. In addition to 11 casino-based retail sportsbooks, three are located at off-track betting locations licensed to Hawthorne Race Course as permitted in the gaming expansion bill signed into law by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker in June 2019 that legalized sports betting.