FanDuel Sportsbook is now available in the state of Illinois. One of the biggest sports betting operators in the industry is hoping to take advantage of an Illinois market that is expected to show tremendous growth in the coming months.
FanDuel has partnered with Boyd Gaming and will operate sports betting at the Par-A-Dice Casino in East Peoria, Ill. Retail sports betting has not yet been established by the company, but the mobile sports betting app is available for download on both Android and iOS devices.
It was just a few weeks ago when FanDuel announced its partnership with Boyd Gaming, and it took little time to get its mobile app up and running. FanDuel has dominated other markets around the country, and it is expected to do the same in Illinois.
FanDuel Sportsbook was offering a risk-free bet up to $500 for new customers, and it also featured several boosted odds. The Chicago Cubs on Friday night were listed at +100 to score one-plus runs in their game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Customers that have already signed up for a DFS account through FanDuel can use the same login information to create their sports betting account. Location services must be enabled to place a bet through the mobile app.
Avoiding the Penalty Box
When Illinois lawmakers passed an expanded gambling bill last June, it appeared that Illinois would not see either DraftKings or FanDuel until 2022 at the earliest. Lawmakers were unhappy with the two DFS operators for what they believed were illegal practices.
Both FanDuel and DraftKings were placed in the “penalty box” and were not allowed to apply for an online-only operating license for 18 months after the first legal bet was placed. Both companies found ways around the penalty box by partnering with a licensed casino in the state and applying for a license that way.
Remote Registration Once Again Legal
One of the biggest reasons that FanDuel launched its sports betting app so quickly is because mobile registration is once again legal in the state of Illinois. The initial gaming law stated that bettors had to visit a casino to complete the registration process, but that has been amended twice.
Governor JB Pritzker removed the in-person registration requirement in June, but he reinstated that law at the end of July. Illinois was not seeing huge sports betting revenue numbers, and Pritzker decided to once again lift the in-person registration requirements, which gives DraftKings and FanDuel a chance to be successful.
Competition Already Heating Up
There are now three mobile sportsbooks up and running in Illinois, and the competition is already starting to heat up. FanDuel joins BetRivers and DraftKings as the other operators in the state.
The parent company of BetRivers, Rush Street Gaming, has been vocal in trying to keep both DraftKings and FanDuel out of Illinois, but lawmakers saw things differently. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins posted a tweet earlier this week attacking Rush Street for its “corrupt” practices.
