GAMING-SPORTS WAGERING LICENSE

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB5034

Introduced 2/10/2026, by Rep. Robert "Bob" Rita

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

230 ILCS 45/25-10
230 ILCS 45/25-45

Amends the Sports Wagering Act. Provides that applicants for a master
sports wagering license shall pay an application fee of $250,000 and a
license fee of $15,000,000. Removes provisions concerning the number of
master sports wagering licenses to online sports wagering operators and
public notice requirements. Provides that a master sports wagering
licensee may conduct sports wagering over the Internet or through a mobile
application. Removes provisions concerning eligibility requirements for a
master sports wagering license, the duty of disclosure for an applicant,
and outreach requirements for the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity and the Illinois Gaming Board. Makes a conforming change.
Effective immediately.
LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b

A BILL FOR

HB5034
LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1

AN ACT concerning gaming.

2

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3
represented in the General Assembly:

4

Section 5.
The Sports Wagering Act is amended by changing
5
Sections 25-10 and 25-45 as follows:

6

(230 ILCS 45/25-10)
7

Sec. 25-10.
Definitions.
As used in this Act:
8

"Adjusted gross sports wagering receipts" means a master
9
sports wagering licensee's gross sports wagering receipts,
10
less winnings paid to wagerers in such games.
11

"Athlete" means any current or former professional athlete
12
or collegiate athlete.
13

"Board" means the Illinois Gaming Board.
14

"Covered persons" includes athletes; umpires, referees,
15
and officials; personnel associated with clubs, teams,
16
leagues, and athletic associations; medical professionals
17
(including athletic trainers) who provide services to athletes
18
and players; and the family members and associates of these
19
persons where required to serve the purposes of this Act.
20

"Department" means the Department of the Lottery.
21

"Gaming facility" means a facility at which gambling
22
operations are conducted under the Illinois Gambling Act,
23
pari-mutuel wagering is conducted under the Illinois Horse

HB5034
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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
Racing Act of 1975, or sports wagering is conducted under this
2
Act.
3

"Official league data" means statistics, results,
4
outcomes, and other data related to a sports event obtained
5
pursuant to an agreement with the relevant sports governing
6
body, or an entity expressly authorized by the sports
7
governing body to provide such information to licensees, that
8
authorizes the use of such data for determining the outcome of
9
tier 2 sports wagers on such sports events.
10

"Organization licensee" has the meaning given to that term
11
in the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975.
12

"Owners licensee" means the holder of an owners license
13
under the Illinois Gambling Act.
14

"Person" means an individual, partnership, committee,
15
association, corporation, or any other organization or group
16
of persons.
17

"Personal biometric data" means an athlete's information
18
derived from DNA, heart rate, blood pressure, perspiration
19
rate, internal or external body temperature, hormone levels,
20
glucose levels, hydration levels, vitamin levels, bone
21
density, muscle density, and sleep patterns.
22

"Prohibited conduct" includes any statement, action, and
23
other communication intended to influence, manipulate, or
24
control a betting outcome of a sporting contest or of any
25
individual occurrence or performance in a sporting contest in
26
exchange for financial gain or to avoid financial or physical

HB5034
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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
harm. "Prohibited conduct" includes statements, actions, and
2
communications made to a covered person by a third party, such
3
as a family member or through social media. "Prohibited
4
conduct" does not include statements, actions, or
5
communications made or sanctioned by a team or sports
6
governing body.
7

"Qualified applicant" means an applicant for a license
8
under this Act whose application meets the mandatory minimum
9
qualification criteria as required by the Board.
10

"Sporting contest" means a sports event or game on which
11
the State allows sports wagering to occur under this Act.
12

"Sports event" means a professional sport or athletic
13
event, a collegiate sport or athletic event, a motor race
14
event, or any other event or competition of relative skill
15
authorized by the Board under this Act.
16

"Sports facility" means a facility that hosts sports
17
events and holds a seating capacity greater than 17,000
18
persons, except in a municipality with a population of more
19
than 1,000,000, a seating capacity greater than 10,000
20
persons.
21

"Sports governing body" means the organization that
22
prescribes final rules and enforces codes of conduct with
23
respect to a sports event and participants therein.
24

"Sports wagering" means accepting wagers on sports events
25
or portions of sports events, or on the individual performance
26
statistics of athletes in a sports event or combination of

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1
sports events, by any system or method of wagering, including,
2
but not limited to, in person or over the Internet through
3
websites and on mobile devices. "Sports wagering" includes,
4
but is not limited to, single-game bets, teaser bets, parlays,
5
over-under, moneyline, pools, exchange wagering, in-game
6
wagering, in-play bets, proposition bets, and straight bets.
7

"Sports wagering account" means a financial record
8
established by a master sports wagering licensee for an
9
individual patron in which the patron may deposit and withdraw
10
funds for sports wagering and other authorized purchases and
11
to which the master sports wagering licensee may credit
12
winnings or other amounts due to that patron or authorized by
13
that patron.
14

"Tier 1 sports wager" means a sports wager that is
15
determined solely by the final score or final outcome of the
16
sports event and is placed before the sports event has begun.
17

"Tier 2 sports wager" means a sports wager that is not a
18
tier 1 sports wager.
19

"Wager" means a sum of money or thing of value risked on an
20
uncertain occurrence.
21

"Winning bidder" means a qualified applicant for a master
22
sports wagering license chosen through the competitive
23
selection process under Section 25-45.
24
(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19; 102-689, eff. 12-17-21.)

25

(230 ILCS 45/25-45)

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1

Sec. 25-45.
Master sports wagering license issued to an
2
online sports wagering operator.
3

(a)
The Board may issue master sports wagering licenses to
4
persons to conduct sports wagering over the Internet or
5
through a mobile application.

The Board shall issue 3 master
6
sports wagering licenses to online sports wagering operators
7
for a nonrefundable license fee of $20,000,000 pursuant to an
8
open and competitive selection process. The master sports
9
wagering license issued under this Section may be renewed
10
every 4 years upon payment of a $1,000,000 renewal fee.
To the
11
extent permitted by federal and State law, the Board shall
12
actively seek to achieve racial, ethnic, and geographic
13
diversity when issuing master sports wagering licenses under
14
this Section and encourage minority-owned businesses,
15
women-owned businesses, veteran-owned businesses, and
16
businesses owned by persons with disabilities to apply for
17
licensure.
18

For the purposes of this subsection (a), "minority-owned
19
business", "women-owned business", and "business owned by
20
persons with disabilities" have the meanings given to those
21
terms in Section 2 of the Business Enterprise for Minorities,
22
Women, and Persons with Disabilities Act.
23

(b)
Applicants shall pay to the Board a nonrefundable
24
application fee in the amount of $250,000. The initial license
25
fee for a master sports wagering license issued to an online
26
sports wagering operator is $15,000,000. The master sports

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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
wagering license is valid for 4 years.

Applications for the
2
initial competitive selection occurring after the effective
3
date of this Act shall be received by the Board within 540 days
4
after the first license is issued under this Act to qualify.
5
The Board shall announce the winning bidders for the initial
6
competitive selection within 630 days after the first license
7
is issued under this Act, and this time frame may be extended
8
at the discretion of the Board.
9

(c)
A licensee may renew the master sports wagering
10
license for a period of 4 years by paying a $1,000,000 renewal
11
fee to the Board.

The Board shall provide public notice of its
12
intent to solicit applications for master sports wagering
13
licenses under this Section by posting the notice, application
14
instructions, and materials on its website for at least 30
15
calendar days before the applications are due. Failure by an
16
applicant to submit all required information may result in the
17
application being disqualified. The Board may notify an
18
applicant that its application is incomplete and provide an
19
opportunity to cure by rule. Application instructions shall
20
include a brief overview of the selection process and how
21
applications are scored.
22

(d)
A master sports wagering licensee may conduct sports
23
wagering over the Internet or through a mobile application.

To
24
be eligible for a master sports wagering license under this
25
Section, an applicant must: (1) be at least 21 years of age;
26
(2) not have been convicted of a felony offense or a violation

HB5034
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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
of Article 28 of the Criminal Code of 1961 or the Criminal Code
2
of 2012 or a similar statute of any other jurisdiction; (3) not
3
have been convicted of a crime involving dishonesty or moral
4
turpitude; (4) have demonstrated a level of skill or knowledge
5
that the Board determines to be necessary in order to operate
6
sports wagering; and (5) have met standards for the holding of
7
a license as adopted by rules of the Board.
8

The Board may adopt rules to establish additional
9
qualifications and requirements to preserve the integrity and
10
security of sports wagering in this State and to promote and
11
maintain a competitive sports wagering market. After the close
12
of the application period, the Board shall determine whether
13
the applications meet the mandatory minimum qualification
14
criteria and conduct a comprehensive, fair, and impartial
15
evaluation of all qualified applications.
16

(e)
(Blank).

The Board shall open all qualified
17
applications in a public forum and disclose the applicants'
18
names. The Board shall summarize the terms of the proposals
19
and make the summaries available to the public on its website.
20

(f)
(Blank).

Not more than 90 days after the publication
21
of the qualified applications, the Board shall identify the
22
winning bidders. In granting the licenses, the Board may give
23
favorable consideration to qualified applicants presenting
24
plans that provide for economic development and community
25
engagement. To the extent permitted by federal and State law,
26
the Board may give favorable consideration to qualified

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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
applicants demonstrating commitment to diversity in the
2
workplace.
3

(g)
(Blank).

Upon selection of the winning bidders, the
4
Board shall have a reasonable period of time to ensure
5
compliance with all applicable statutory and regulatory
6
criteria before issuing the licenses. If the Board determines
7
a winning bidder does not satisfy all applicable statutory and
8
regulatory criteria, the Board shall select another bidder
9
from the remaining qualified applicants.
10

(h)
(Blank).

Nothing in this Section is intended to confer
11
a property or other right, duty, privilege, or interest
12
entitling an applicant to an administrative hearing upon
13
denial of an application.
14

(i)
(Blank).

Upon issuance of a master sports wagering
15
license to a winning bidder, the information and plans
16
provided in the application become a condition of the license.
17
A master sports wagering licensee under this Section has a
18
duty to disclose any material changes to the application.
19
Failure to comply with the conditions or requirements in the
20
application may subject the master sports wagering licensee
21
under this Section to discipline, including, but not limited
22
to, fines, suspension, and revocation of its license, pursuant
23
to rules adopted by the Board.
24

(j)
(Blank).

The Board shall disseminate information about
25
the licensing process through media demonstrated to reach
26
large numbers of business owners and entrepreneurs who are

HB5034
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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
minorities, women, veterans, and persons with disabilities.
2

(k)
(Blank).

The Department of Commerce and Economic
3
Opportunity, in conjunction with the Board, shall conduct
4
ongoing, thorough, and comprehensive outreach to businesses
5
owned by minorities, women, veterans, and persons with
6
disabilities about contracting and entrepreneurial
7
opportunities in sports wagering. This outreach shall include,
8
but not be limited to:
9

(1) cooperating and collaborating with other State
10

boards, commissions, and agencies; public and private
11

universities and community colleges; and local governments
12

to target outreach efforts; and
13

(2) working with organizations serving minorities,
14

women, and persons with disabilities to establish and
15

conduct training for employment in sports wagering.
16

(l)
(Blank).

The Board shall partner with the Department
17
of Labor, the Department of Financial and Professional
18
Regulation, and the Department of Commerce and Economic
19
Opportunity to identify employment opportunities within the
20
sports wagering industry for job seekers and dislocated
21
workers.
22

(m) By March 1, 2020, the Board shall prepare a request for
23
proposals to conduct a study of the online sports wagering
24
industry and market to determine whether there is a compelling
25
interest in implementing remedial measures, including the
26
application of the Business Enterprise Program under the

HB5034
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LRB104 20120 LNS 33571 b
1
Business Enterprise for Minorities, Women, and Persons with
2
Disabilities Act or a similar program to assist minorities,
3
women, and persons with disabilities in the sports wagering
4
industry.
5

As a part of the study, the Board shall evaluate race and
6
gender-neutral programs or other methods that may be used to
7
address the needs of minority and women applicants and
8
minority-owned and women-owned businesses seeking to
9
participate in the sports wagering industry. The Board shall
10
submit to the General Assembly and publish on its website the
11
results of this study by August 1, 2020.
12

If, as a result of the study conducted under this
13
subsection (m), the Board finds that there is a compelling
14
interest in implementing remedial measures, the Board may
15
adopt rules, including emergency rules, to implement remedial
16
measures, if necessary and to the extent permitted by State
17
and federal law, based on the findings of the study conducted
18
under this subsection (m).
19
(Source: P.A. 101-31, eff. 6-28-19.)

20

Section 99.
Effective date.
This Act takes effect upon
21
becoming law.

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