Bet365 will soon be coming to Illinois.
The Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) has announced that it has approved the British operator’s sports betting license, allowing the company to launch in-person and mobile wagering through a partnership with Walker’s Bluff Casino Resort.
Walker’s Bluff has been granted a Master Sports Wagering License and bet365 has been given a Management Services Provider License. The two brands will work together to offer sports wagering at the resort and online throughout the state.
Bet365 will join an online sports betting market that has proven to be one of the most lucrative in the entire country.
Illinois’ nine mobile sportsbooks have taken around $11 billion in sports bets in 2024 through the end of October, up 23% year-over-year. In October, it posted an all-time record betting handle of $1.45 billion and became just the fourth state after New York, New Jersey and Nevada to eclipse $40 billion in all-time sports wagering handle.
Whenever it goes live, bet365 will be the 10th online sportsbook in Illinois, joining the likes of BetMGM, Caesars, Fanatics, ESPN Bet and BetRivers to be the best of the rest behind the big two of DraftKings and FanDuel.
New betting tax landscape
In Illinois, bet365 will also have to contend with one of the newest and most debated betting tax structures in the U.S.
A new progressive state sports wagering tax was officially introduced in June when as Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the state’s budget into law. The sliding scale ranges from a low of 20%, already higher than some states’ flat rate, to a maximum of 40%. That ceiling is lower than only New York’s 51% sports betting tax rate.
Bet365 would not be in line to pay that much, as the 40% rate is only levied on adjusted gross revenue of over $200 million. In the vaguely comparable sports betting market of New Jersey, where October 2024 handle was $1.13 billion vs. Illinois’ $1.45 billion, bet365 made $3.66 million in gross gaming revenue.
bet365 keeps reaching out in US
In its 2025 Annual Sports Betting Report released earlier this month, bet365 detailed how it has continued to expand its operations across North America.
The company entered the Pennsylvania sports wagering market through a partnership with Presque Isle Casino. As of the end of October, it has taken just short of $100 million in bets in that state and made around $10 million in revenue.
It also opened a new major office in Denver in September and subsequently partnered with Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), which owns the Denver Nuggets NBA team and Colorado Avalanche NHL team.
A bet365 spokesperson told SBC Americas in October that, “our main priority in the U.S. is driving growth in our live states.” However, its license in Illinois shows the company, firmly entrenched as a contender in the second tier of operators in the U.S., continues to explore new state launches. Illinois will be its 12th U.S. state.
