Press Releases
PlayIllinois.com: Sportsbooks post huge month, but March could be ‘last hurrah’ for major growth
Illinois sportsbooks set records for betting and revenue in March, easily reaching $600 million in monthly wagering for the first time and again surpassing Pennsylvania, a dramatic turn one year after the industry’s launch was spoiled by the pandemic-related shutdown of major U.S. sports. But as far as Illinois has come, the state’s newfound position as the nation’s No. 3 market could be short-lived as in-person registration requirements begin to take hold, said PlayIllinois, which analyzes and researches the state’s regulated online gaming and sports betting market.
“March Madness helped deliver a huge month for Illinois, but March is essentially a ‘last hurrah’ for the state’s rapid growth,” said Joe Boozell, analyst for PlayIllinois.com. “Illinois will still be one of the largest U.S. markets because of the population of the state, but it will be difficult to maintain its current status as the U.S. No. 3, much less catch Nevada. No matter how appealing a market, there isn’t any easy way to overcome the inconvenience of in-person registration.”
Spurred by March Madness, betting at Illinois’s retail and online sportsbooks surged to $633.6 million in March, according to official data released Monday. That is up 24.3% from $509.8 million in February and easily topped the previous record $581.6 million in January. Bettors placed $20.4 million per day in the 31 days of March, up from $18.2 million per day in February.
March’s high volume produced $49.9 million in operator revenue, up 64.6% from $30.3 million in February and narrowly topping the record $49.4 million in January. The month’s win created $44.3 million in taxable revenue, which yielded $6.6 million in state taxes and another $493,543 in local taxes.
Illinois surpassed Pennsylvania ($560.3 million) in monthly handle for the second straight month and gained ground on New Jersey ($859.6 million) and Nevada ($641 million). In doing so, the state surpassed $3 billion ($3.6 billion) in lifetime handle.
That stands in stark contrast to March 2020, when Illinois launched retail sportsbooks, taking in $997,739 in bets before a wave of sports cancellations essentially put a hold on sports betting in Illinois until July.
“The growth over the last year has been staggering, making Illinois the quickest to $3 billion in U.S. history,” said Jessica Welman, analyst for PlayIllinois. “The question now becomes what will happen when the brakes are hit on that growth? Does it alarm lawmakers enough to make a change? Or will Illinois be satisfied with where the sports betting market has been frozen in place?”
The NCAA Tournament was the main driver in March, generating an estimated $176.8 million in bets even as bettors were barred from wagering on Illinois and Loyola Chicago. The NBA also drew well, helping to push basketball betting to $365.7 million. The previous high for basketball in a month was $256.7 million.
Tennis also continues to do especially well in Illinois, hitting $47.2 million in wagering, the second-most wagered-on sport.
“Illinois has grown in some unique ways, but the state’s love of basketball has really carried the state over the last few months,” Boozell said. “If the ban on betting on in-state college teams didn’t exist, Illinois would have likely been the No. 2 market in the U.S. in March.”
Online wagering accounted for 96.1%, or $609 million, of all bets in March. Retail betting generated the remaining $24.6 million.
DraftKings/Casino Queen represented 32.2% of the state’s entire handle in March, generating $207.6 million in online and retail wagers, up from the operator’s $199.8 million handle in February. Nearly $203.9 million of March’s bets came online.
FanDuel/Fairmont attracted $195.2 million in bets — $194.9 million of which came online. BetRivers/Rivers Casino continued to lose pace with the market leaders, generating $95.7 million in online betting and $106.9 million overall, up from $86.9 million in February.
The leaders were followed by:
PointsBet/Hawthorne Race Course ($55 million in wagers, including $53.6 million online; $5.1 million in revenue)
Barstool/Hollywood Casinos ($48.9 million in wagers, including $47.8 million online; $1.1 million in revenue)
William Hill/Grand Victoria ($14.2 million in wagers, including $13.3 million online; -$270,456 in revenue)
Argosy ($4.1 million in wagers; $410,477 in revenue)
Hollywood Joliet ($1.2 million in wagers; $127,344 in revenue)
Par-A-Dice ($628,286 in wagers; -$163,180 in revenue)
“One of the biggest issues with the return of in-person registration is it puts newly launched operators at a permanent disadvantage,” Welman said. “In one way, Barstool was fortunate to launch when it did, helping them build a foundation. But growth will be difficult for all operators, and especially those that are farther away from the largest population centers.”
For more information and analysis on regulated sports betting in Illinois, visit PlayIllinois.com/news.
About the PlayUSA.com Network:
The PlayUSA.com Network is a leading source for news, analysis, and research related to the market for regulated online gaming in the United States. With a presence in over a dozen states, PlayUSA.com and its state-focused branches (including PlayIndiana.com, PlayIllinois.com, PlayNJ.com and PlayPennsylvania.com) produce daily original reporting, publish in-depth research, and offer player advocacy tools related to the advancement of safe, licensed, and legal online gaming options for consumers. Based in Las Vegas, the PlayUSA Network is independently owned and operated, with no affiliation to any casino — commercial, tribal, online, or otherwise.
SX Bet is the fastest-growing on-chain betting exchange—built for the future of sports and crypto.
SX Bet has officially launched on Berachain, marking the next milestone in its cross-chain expansion strategy. With over 2 million bets placed, $675 million wagered, and 93% year-over-year growth in volume, SX Bet is reshaping the future of sports betting — and Berachain is the next big stage.
SX Bet’s Berachain launch comes with a unique incentive structure designed to reward bettors for their activity. Users can now place bets using the native $HONEY stablecoin and earn $SXBRT, a receipt token that can be staked to the SX Vault on BeraHub to generate weekly yields in $BGT, Berachain’s governance token. The more you win, the more you earn.
SX Bet will be hosting a summer Berachain betting tournament with a 69,420 bet credit prize pool from May 31 – July 14th and airdropping bet credits to top Berachain communities.
But the Berachain deployment is not just about incentives. It’s about creating a scalable global liquidity hub for bettors and builders alike. Builders can leverage SX liquidity to launch their own custom betting frontends and experiences.
“SX Bet isn’t just a single dApp — it’s a betting protocol anyone can build on. With this Berachain launch, we’re not just growing SX, we’re growing the entire Web3 betting ecosystem,” said Andrew Young, SX Bet Project Lead.
The cross-chain architecture enables shared liquidity across multiple blockchains, allowing users to place bets on their preferred chain without sacrificing odds or depth.
Already the top sports betting dApp by volume on Arbitrum, SX Bet has achieved sustained growth without relying on ongoing incentives — proving that sharp odds, fast UX, and a product-first approach win. Bettors choose SX for its peer-to-peer, non-custodial, on-chain model — a platform with the best odds, deepest liquidity, and a clear message: winners are welcome.
SX Bet is setting the standard for scalable sports betting infrastructure in Web3.
For bettors: more rewards, deeper liquidity, and better odds.
For builders: a plug-and-play liquidity engine to leverage and build upon.
For chains: a sticky, high-volume dApp proven to drive user growth and retention.
Start betting and earning on Berachain today: bera.bet
Win Systems, a leading provider of technology for the gaming and entertainment industry, will host an exclusive event on May 28 and 29 at its offices in Peru, where it will present a showroom dedicated to present its latest innovations in products and solutions for casinos and venues.
One of the main highlights of the event will be the live presentation of the Gold Club Colors electronic roulette, an evolution of the company’s flagship model that incorporates a high level of aesthetic and functional customization. This upgraded version allows the product design to be adapted to the visual identity of each casino, providing a unique opportunity to enhance the ambiance and distinctive character of every venue. Operators will be able to fully customize the LED colors and handrests, as well as other key components such as the cylinder, ball track cone, and cylinder cover, achieving seamless integration with the casino environment. This flexibility makes the Gold Club Colors a strategic tool to stand out visually and enrich the gaming experience.
“We want our partners and operators in Peru to experience this firsthand. This event will not only allow them to explore our products in detail but also see how the new functionalities of the Colors take the gaming experience to the next level,” said Galy Olazo, Country Manager Peru.
In addition to the aesthetic customization options, attendees will be introduced to the new game layout design and the innovative dynamic paytable, which adjusts payouts according to each game’s dynamics, offering a more strategic and engaging experience for players.
The Win Systems showroom in Peru is a unique opportunity to see one of the world’s most renowned electronic roulettes in action—now with more technology, more customization, and more value for operators.
Win Systems invites all interested parties to schedule an appointment by writing to [email protected].
The International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) has released the program for its upcoming annual conference, to be held in Toronto from 20-23 October.
With the theme ‘Resilient regulation: Exploring what works, why and what’s next’, the event brings together global regulators and thought leaders to examine how regulatory frameworks can evolve to meet today’s challenges.
The four-day program explores timely issues, including the rise of AI and behavioural analytics, the impact of converging technologies, cross-border collaboration and the continued push to strengthen responsible gambling policies.
IAGR President Ben Haden said the program offers a strong preview of the content and conversations delegates can expect in Toronto.
‘This year’s program showcases the breadth and complexity of the challenges facing gambling regulators worldwide, from protecting player wellbeing to tackling illegal markets and understanding new technologies,’ Haden said.
‘I encourage regulators, researchers and policy professionals from around the world to join us in Toronto. The conference is a space to learn, share experience, challenge assumptions and shape the future of effective, collaborative regulation.’
Confirmed speakers and panellists include:
- Andrew Rhodes, CEO, Gambling Commission, Great Britain
- Anders Dorph, Director, Danish Gambling Authority, Denmark
- Dr Karin Schnarr, CEO and Registrar, Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, Canada
- Mark Vander Linden, Director of Research and Responsible Gaming and Carrie Torrisi, Chief of Sports Wagering Division, Massachusetts Gaming Commission, United States
- Bashir Are, CEO, Lagos State Lotteries and Gaming Authority, Nigeria
- Teo Chun Ching, Chief Executive, Gambling Regulatory Authority, Singapore
- Ladipo Abiose Akolade, Founder, GamblePause Initiative Africa, Nigeria
- Rasmus Kjaergaard, CEO, Mindway AI, Denmark
- Tracy Parker, Senior Vice President, Accreditation, Advisory and Insights, Responsible Gambling Council, Canada
- Pedro Romero, Chief of Safer Gambling Partnerships, BetBlocker, Gibraltar
- Sonia Wasowska, Head of Supervision, General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, United Arab Emirates
- Steven Blackburn, Partner, Ashurst Risk Advisory, Australia
The event will be held at The Westin Harbour Castle on Toronto’s waterfront.
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