DraftKings Launches In Illinois, But Will In-Person Registration Keep It From Becoming Royalty?

In every state it operates, DraftKings is a significant person in the sports gambling sector. But, the amount of its strength in Illinois is still unknown.

DraftKings Sportsbook began accepting both in-person and online bets in Illinois on Wednesday, Aug. 5. Interestingly, there are some ironic aspects to DraftKings’ journey in the Prairie State.

How DraftKings Illinois welcomes new clients

Today, DraftKings Illinois accepts website bets. However, registering for DraftKings Sportsbook isn’t as simple as downloading the app or visiting the website.

That is entirely DraftKings’ fault, anyway.

Under Illinois law, newcomers must finalize their online betting registrations in person. So theoretically, before you can place bets online, you would need to first make a visit to the physical sportsbook located at the Casino Queen in East St. Louis.

That legal principle’s existence is partly due to DraftKings.

The state government designed it as a “penalty box” in response to DraftKings’ disregard for a 2015 IL attorney general’s opinion, which declared its daily fantasy games to be illegal gambling.

Eventually, that will expire, but it’s likely to take almost two years. Interestingly, it might be easier for Illinois sports bettors, particularly those residing in areas such as Chicagoland and the QuadCities, to stick with their current routines rather than change them.

Why some IL DraftKings users may continue to wager in various states

The in-person registration requirement at DraftKings Sportsbook includes consumers who have been using the wager platform in Indiana and Iowa.

Even if you already own a sportsbook account in another state, you are required to visit the Casino Queen to place bets on the DraftKings app or website while in Illinois.

If you’re in Chicago, it would necessitate almost a five-hour journey one way. If you’re in Rock Island, it would approximately take you four hours to reach there by car, both ways.

Even if it’s a one-time trip, there are more practical options.

Bettors from the wider Chicago area can still cross the state line into the Hoosier State to place all their bets with DraftKings. The same applies to residents of western Illinois, near the Iowa border.

Iowa mandates in-person membership, however, the Wild Rose Casino in Clinton, Iowa, hosts a physical DraftKings Sportsbook. This is a much shorter drive for Rock Island residents.

Once registered, you can perform all necessary activities in the Iowa area of the Mississippi River. Furthermore, the mandate for in-person registration in Iowa will be lifted on January 1, 2021. However, this requirement will continue to be enforced in Illinois at that time.

This could potentially lead to increased tax revenue for IA and IN instead of IL’s state funds. This suggests that the Illinois state could be more profoundly affected by the sentence field than DraftKings.

Despite the account being restricted to DraftKings Illinois, the brand still has significant potential for success considering the current circumstances. Frankly, the St. Louis area is not an ideal starting point.

Why are DraftKings in the Land of Lincoln experiencing such doom and gloom?

The greater St. Louis region, being one of the densest population hubs in the Midwest, could potentially provide significant activity for DraftKings. This is a reasonable expectation given that Missouri has yet to legalize sports betting, resulting in potential users from across the river.

DraftKings not only brings advertising capital but also brand recognition wherever it operates. It’s one of the few gambling entities in Illinois that can afford to run at a loss to capture more market share.

At present, BetRivers Illinois is the sole online competitor. Although PointsBet and WilliamHill may be close to entering the market, their physical establishments, like Rivers Casino, are also located in the wider Chicago area.

However, DraftKings is the sole company in the underground area of St. Louis. It’s highly probable that it will draw new clients from Springfield, Peoria, and Bloomington.

The launch of DraftKings & rsquo is an exciting development for sports betting in Illinois.

Determining the brand’s market share is challenging due to various factors, yet there remains hope that it will ultimately prevail.