Pritzker Ends Mobile Sports Betting Registration In Illinois

Written By Joe Boozell on April 2, 2021Last Updated on March 16, 2022
mobile registration april

Editor’s Note: As of Saturday, March 5, 2022, you no longer have to visit a retail sportsbook in Illinois to sign up for a legal online sportsbook. Instead, you can register for an Illinois sports betting account on your phone or computer.

Register for wireless sports betting was enjoyable while it lasted.

Online registration has been in place since late August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But on Friday, Gov. JB Pritzkerdid not renewExecutive Order 2020-41, which means bettors in Illinois will now have to visit a retail sportsbook in order to sign up for an online account.

Since the spring, Illinois‘ COVID-19 view has improved, which undoubtedly influenced the choice. It & rsquo, however, is a surprising move given the fact that the pandemic is still ongoing.

Coronavirus cases are also on the rise in the Land of Lincoln.

This is significant news for existing Illinois sportsbooks, but it’s even more damaging for customers and new operators.

Barstool recently launched and is still in a critical customer acquisition stage, while BetMGM Sportsbook may not be too far off.

In order to attract new customers, online registration is essential, especially now that Illinois & rsquo, five original online sportsbooks, have been able to do so remotely for a number of months.

That’s helped Illinois become the No. 4 sports betting market in the US, posting $581.6 millionin handle in January. The Illinois market wouldn’t have reached this point in such short order had all gone as planned.

For what it’s for, we haven’t heard of any problems resulting from mobile membership.

A closer examination of Pritzker & rsquo’s choice is provided here.

Increased COVID – 19 treatments, but circumstances on the rise

Despite an increase in cases and a positive rate, Pritzker ended smart registration.

The seven-day rolling positivity rate was 4.1% as of Friday. That’s up from 2.4% last month at this time.

For context, Pritzker last reinstated in-person registration in late July, when the state positivity rate hovered around 3%.

When the positivity rate reached around 4 % in late August, he then reversed it. Prior to Friday, Pritzker had not changed his program.

As of now, 25% of Illinoisans have received at least one vaccine shot. Pritzker recently said that all Illinois adults would be eligible for the vaccine by mid-April, excluding Chicagoans.

What lies ahead?

It’s difficult to say for sure, but if new variants don’t spread, the outlook for Illinois COVID-19 may get even better over the coming months.

In terms of immunizing its citizens, Illinois is currently in the lead, and registration is expected to rise.

Although Pritzker & rsquo’s most recent move is great news, we will likely have in-person registration for a while.

When Illinois issues an operator an online-only license, which costs$ 20 million, the requirement is tied to that license. The earliest that could occur is January 2022, and given the high cost, there might not be any bids.

It’s likely that new legislation may be required in order to reinstate online registration.

a harsh the creation of Barstool

Barstoolsimply began operations in Illinois in March.

Illinois residents will now need to go to one of their physical casinos in order to file.

Additionally, Barstool has partnered with Argosy Casino Alton, Hollywood Casino Joliet, and Aurora Casino, so it will have a sizable financial appearance in Illinois.

However, having a physical presence doesn’t contrast to being able to sign up and place bets from your sofa. Each month, Illinoisans constantly wager more than 90 % of their money online.

In comparison to other El operators, Barstool has a significant client acquisition disadvantage due to the in-person registration process.

We are also on BetMGM watch, as FanDuel officially transferred its sports betting license to its racetrack.

However, if BetMGM collaborates with East Peoria‘s Par-A-Dice Casino, it would be in a worse situation than Barstool.

The IL sports betting market is experiencing but another sharp change in the roller coaster.

The State Journal – Register pictures by Justin L. Fowler
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Boozell, Joe

Boozell, Joe has also been a college sports writer for NCAA.com since 2015. His work has also appeared in Bleacher Report, FoxSports.com and NBA.com. Growing up, Boozell squared off against both Anthony Davis and Frank Kaminsky in the Chicagoland basketball scene … you can imagine how that went.

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