Illinois launched a wave of enforcement action against nearly a dozen gaming operators in the space of a week as it looks to crack down on unlicensed sportsbooks and daily fantasy sports operators.
Working with the Illinois Attorney General’s office, the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) sent 11 cease-and-desist letters earlier this month to operators it believed were in violation of state gaming law.
In the lead-up to Super Bowl LIX on Feb. 9, lllinois AG Kwame Raoul called out DFS operator PrizePicks and offshore online casino and sportsbook Bovada and noted that his office had sent C&Ds to both operators. While one is an offshore operator and the other is a DFS site, Raoul characterized the two companies as “alleged unlicensed sports wagering sites.”
Here are the 11 additional sites sent letters from IGB:
- Bet Any Sports
- Bet Online
- Bet US
- Blitz Studios, Inc. d/b/a Sleeper
- Book Maker
- Taild Sports Inc. d/b/a Chalkboard
- Drafters
- Heritage Sports
- Parlay Play
All 11 letters note that the IGB has reason to believe that the operator in question “is engaging in unlicensed sports wagering in violation of the Illinois Sports Wagering Act and Illinois Criminal Code.” The IGB’s definition of sports wagering includes typical sports betting such as single-game wagers, parlays, props and in-play bets, as well as exchange wagering and pools.
States ramping up offshore efforts
States attempting enforcement action to push out unlicensed operators was a recurring theme in 2024, with Bovada the name most often in the headlines.
Illinois isn’t the only state to ramp up its efforts early in 2025. Earlier this month, the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) announced publicly that it had sent C&Ds to nine online casinos, including Bet Any Sports. The MGCB had previously chased Bovada, MyBookie, sweepstakes operators VGW and One Country and skill games provider Papaya Gaming.
The vast majority of the operators incurring the ire of Illinois, Michigan and other states are offshore brands. Bovada operates out of Curaçao; Bet Any Sport, Bet US and Book Maker are all Costa Rican, Bet Online’s HQ is in Panama and so forth.
DFS under fire in Illinois as well
Some of the operators contacted by Illinois market themselves as DFS operators, including Chalkboard, Sleeper, Drafters and Atlanta-based PrizePicks. The latter of those brands legally offers its Pick ‘Em against-the-house contests and Arena peer-to-peer game in more than 40 U.S. states.
However, states such as Arkansas, Maryland, Ohio and West Virginia have argued that against-the-house DFS contests too closely resemble sports wagering. The IGB said in its C&D letters to DFS brands that “specifically, the single-player contests you offer are not the legal multi-participant contests of skill the Illinois Supreme Court recognized.”
PrizePicks told SBC Americas on Feb. 7 that it is in the process of transitioning to its Arena P2P product in the state, which it seems may not be in the lien of fire from Illinois regulators. It has re-entered numerous states that it previously left, including Florida, upon switching to the P2P version of its product.
The brand also told SBC Americas that it is “encouraged” by the fact that Illinois lawmakers have filed bills for the current legislative session. Sen. Lakesia Collins’ SB1224 and Sen. Bill Cunningham’s SB2145 would clarify fantasy sports law and regulate legal DFS offerings.
