The 2020 NFL season is officially here, and yesterday’s card was full of awesome action for football fans. The start also brought with it more sports gambling opportunities across the U.S. than ever before, with plenty of states now offering regulated markets. Illinois entered into the mix earlier this year when the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) laid out the rules of the game, and there hasn’t been any shortage of interest. The latest to join the state is PointsBet, which got its mobile gambling app up and running only one day before most of the NFL action commenced.
The Kansas City Chiefs played against the Houston Texans last Thursday, and PointsBet wasn’t able to capture any activity in Illinois, but it made up for it yesterday. The Australia-based sportsbook teamed up with Hawthorne Race Course to make it possible, sealing a deal that was announced only a few days after the state’s governor, J.B. Pritzker, greenlighted sports gambling in the state. Johnny Aitken, the CEO of PointsBet’s U.S. arm, PointsBet U.S.A, said in a statement about the operator’s launch, “PointsBet possesses competitive advantages by owning our technology environment from end to end, such as unrivaled speed and ease of use on a personalized platform. We, together with our partner Hawthorne Race Course, are thrilled to provide the Illinois consumer with exactly what they’ve been craving.”
PointsBet wasn’t the first to get in on the action – BetRivers, DraftKings and FanDuel are already vying for position. However, its entry was made easier by Pritzker’s decision to allow sports bettors to register online, instead of having to make a special trip to an authorized casino. The governor had flip-flopped on that order before reinstating mobile registration, but, as of this Friday, the mandatory trip might be back on the table.
Should Pritzker decide to force in-person registrations again, PointsBet isn’t overly concerned. It will have a retail sportsbook at the Cicero racetrack, as well as three off-track gambling venues around Chicago. Between the four properties, PointsBet will have access to more than nine million residents, accounting for around two-thirds of the state’s population.