Barstool Sportsbook Announces That it is Officially Coming to Illinois

The Barstool Sportsbook is coming soon to Illinois, as an official announcement was made on Monday afternoon. An official launch date has not yet been set, but the app should be available before the start of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.

The Hollywood Casino on Joliet and Aurora shared the announcement on social media on Monday, and Barstool Sports personalities chimed in as well. There are expected to be some major promotional offerings when the app is live for the first time.

Illinois is one of the five biggest sports betting markets in the US, but there hasn’t been a new sportsbook launch since last September. Adding Barstool Sportsbook to the mix should create an even more competitive sport betting market, and Barstool will be a hit with the younger generation of bettors.

The mobile app was made available for download on Monday afternoon, but that’s as far as customers are allowed to go when signing up for an account. There likely won’t be any movement until sometime next week, but that could change at any time.

Registration Details

New users at Barstool Sportsbook will be eligible for a $10 credit at the site just for signing up. That money will be waiting for you when you log in, and there is no promo code that is needed to get that offer.

To complete the registration process, customers will have to share a copy of their social security card with the site to verify their identity. Additional security measures can be added when signing up to provide some extra safety.

At this time, it is unclear which Hollywood Casino location will be claiming Barstool Sportsbook as its online sports betting skin.

Barstool Popular in Michigan

The Barstool Sportsbook is available in just Pennsylvania and Michigan at this time, but it could be available in as many as 10 states by the end of 2021. Penn National launched Barstool in Pennsylvania after that market was already extremely competitive, making it hard to crash the party.

Penn National partnered with the Greektown Casino in Michigan, and the Barstool Sportsbook app is available in both retail and online form. The Barstool Sportsbook was available on the first-day mobile betting was offered, allowing it to become one of the most popular options.

What Comes Next?

It appears that Barstool Sportsbook will be the next online sportsbook to launch, but Unibet could also be in the mix. Unibet announced in 2020 that it planned to launch in the state of Illinois, but not much progress has been made since that time.

FanDuel Sportsbook has changed its online affiliation to Fairmount Park, leaving the Par-A-Dice Casino in East Peoria, Ill. This could potentially open the door for BetMGM to enter the state, as MGM Resorts International and Boyd Gaming already have a partnership in place.

The Illinois Gaming Board is set to meet on March 10, and there are expected to be some major announcements that come from that meeting. Finally, the sports betting market in the state of Illinois is set to welcome new operators.