UPDATE NOVEMBER 2021: The Illinois Gaming Board has approved the elimination of the in-person account registration requirement beginning in March 2022. Our guide to opening a new account is still the way to go until then, but this is still great news!
Nothing can be easy when it is regulated by the state of Illinois. Setting up a sports betting account is no exception. The state requires a few hoops to jump through before you can actually make a bet. Hopefully the folks at Hawthorne Casino Insider can guide you through this process in a painless way.
The State of Illinois has required, for the first 18 months of legalized sports betting, initial deposits must be made in-person at a brick and mortar location. This means that you can set up your account online from anywhere in the state. But before you can get some skin in the game you must make the trek to a land based casino or sportsbook. Since this restriction is only temporary, we can ignore why its there. Let’s jump right to how we can get around it.
Where to Find an Illinois Sportsbook
At this writing, the following physical sports books are available to patrons in the Land of Lincoln:
BetRivers Sportsbook- Rivers Casino, Des Plaines
PointsBet Sportsbook – Hawthorne Racecourse, Crestwood OTB, Prospect Heights, and Oakbrook Terrace
William Hill Sportsbook – Grand Victoria Casino, Elgin
DraftKings Sportsbook – Casino Queen sportsbook, East St. Louis
FanDuel Sportsbook – Par-a-dice Casino, East Peoria and Fanduel Sportsbook and Horse Racing (formerly Fairmount Park), Collinsville
Barstool Sportsbook – Argosy Casino, Alton and Hollywood Casino, Joliet
With several other operators planning to go live in 2021, keep checking back to find the latest updates.
The Final Step to Illinois Sports Betting
While you can always make a bet while at the sports book, the fun of sports betting is rooted in its day-to-day availability. This means mobile access to wagering. So now let’s take that final step. The appropriate online registration forms are filled out. You are at the brick and mortar sportsbook counterpart. Go straight to the casino cage or loyalty program station, present your valid forms of identification, present your initial deposit, and receive any signup bonuses. Make sure you have your mobile device on hand. This process may require you to be logged in to the casino Wifi.
While at your gambling operator of choice, there is one more thing. We recommend the final step of linking your sports wagering account to the casino rewards programs. You may as well augment your casino loyalty points with some sports betting wager points.
Once this taken care of, it is time to wager. And if you can, remember it is always best to have multiple sports betting accounts.
