WynnBET has applied for a mobile sports betting license in Illinois, specifically a Management Services Provider license, but it’s not known if the operator would be tied to an existing or new casino.
Six of the state’s 10 casinos are licensed to offer retail sports betting, which was legalized under the gaming expansion bill passed in 2019. Five mobile operators are tethered to those six, and two others are associated with the state’s two horse racing tracks.
Argosy Casino Alton has a market access agreement with Unibet and Harrah’s Joliet has one with theScore Bet. Unibet submitted its sports wagering license application to the gaming board in November 2020. theScore has not yet submitted an application, but it reached a market access deal with Harrah’s Joliet in March 2021, a few months prior to being acquired for $2 billion by Penn National Gaming; as a result, it’s difficult to estimate when it might apply for a license.
Observers said Bally’s in Quad Cities most likely will operate its own platform if it decides to offer mobile wagering. Harrah’s Metropolis and Hollywood Casino Joliet do not currently have a known potential mobile partner.
Some of the six new locations that received casino licenses as a result of the 2019 gaming expansion bill already have sports betting partners or will operate their own mobile wagering platforms. Full House Resorts, which will open American Place in Waukegan, recently announced Circa Sports will operate both its retail and mobile sportsbooks; Circa submitted its application and deposit for a sports wagering license on May 16, according to the Illinois Gaming Board website.
Another of the six new locations, Hard Rock in Rockford, which opened a temporary casino last November, also is expected to offer its own mobile sports wagering platform. Bally’s, which recently was chosen to operate a downtown Chicago casino, is waiting for final gaming board approval before it announces sportsbook or mobile wagering plans.
Walker’s Bluff, which is building a casino in Williamson County, has not named an Illinois sportsbook partner but it partnered with Elite Sportsbook at its two Iowa properties. Wind Creek, which late last year was deemed preliminarily suitable to build a casino in suburban Cook County, also has not announced an Illinois sportsbook partner but it partnered with Betfred in Pennsylvania. That leaves Golden Nugget Danville, which recently broke ground, as another possible WynnBET partner.
