Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has signed an executive order to temporarily relax rules that require consumers in the state to register in-person in order to access online sports betting services.
The state opened its regulated sports wagering market on March 11 this year, after Pritzker signed into law the Sports Wagering Act in July 2019.
The bill stated that for the first 18 months of the market, customers must sign up in-person for an online sports wagering account at a licensed venue. However, this has not been possible since mid-March due to the closure of all casinos as a result of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
The new executive order will suspend this requirement, with players now able to register online or via an operator’s mobile application. This will be in place for as long as the state’s Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamations remain in effect, the order said.
The order did not state when this suspension would be lifted, nor if there would be scope for the temporary rules to remain in place when casinos and sports betting facilities reopen in Illinois.
Last month, the Illinois Gaming Board extended the suspension of all brick-and-mortar gaming activity in the state as a result of Covid-19, but did set a date at which the suspension will end.
Illinois’ land-based gaming facilities first closed on March 16, with the regulator saying at the time that it would review the suspension at the end of that month, before extending the shut-down to April 30.