Illinois Casinos to Close Due to COVID Spikes

COVID-19 is rising across the country again, and Illinois takes extra precautions to limit the spread. Gov. J.B. Pritzker is shutting down all 10 casinos across the state to reduce the virus’s spread.

Illinois is going back into tier 3 lockdown, which means more restrictions on what is allowed to remain open and what must close. Unfortunately, casinos will have to close its doors again to reopen after 14 days if cases, positivity rate, and hospitalizations decrease.

This goes for the whole state of Illinois and not just selected areas. Some casinos and gaming centers could reopen sooner than others, depending on the area’s cases, but right now, everyone is closing. Casinos are in the same section as restaurants and other entertainment venues but are the ones that are getting hit with the restrictions the worst.

Casino Lockdown Details

This is the second time in the Land of Lincoln that gaming venues are closing due to COVID-19. This originally happened on March 15 this year when Gov. Pritzker ordered the whole state to shut down due to COVID.

Casinos were not able to open back up until July 1. Since then, casinos have been operating at 50% capacity with mandatory masks while gaming. Casinos saw $269 million in revenue for the third quarter, which is down from the 2019 third quarter of $342 million.

Now, the fourth quarter might look like the second quarter in gross gaming revenue when the state originally shut down. $0 were brought in from casinos during Q2, which is most likely about to happen in Q4.

“The more we can avoid gatherings, especially indoors with people that we don’t already live with, the more likely we are to be able to celebrate the December holidays with less risk to our loved ones and ourselves,” said Gov. Pritzker.

Fortunately, for sports betting, with online registration still a thing, sportsbooks can operate online to help casinos slightly and help the state bring in some revenue. Illinois saw over $300 million wagered for September and is on a similar growth path as New Jersey when it originally launched sports betting in 2018.

Are Casinos in Other States Closing?

Multiple states are forcing, or at least limiting, casinos to shut down during the second wave of COVID-19. New Jersey is limiting indoor dining, while the Ohio Gov. is forcing casinos to close overnight for temporary cleaning. Michigan and New Mexico commercial casinos are closing down, but tribal casinos are allowed to remain open at their own discretion.

States across the U.S. are dealing with the second outbreak and doing whatever they need to do to reduce the infection numbers and hospitalization rates. It looks like a majority of states have decided to start with casinos and gaming centers.

Fortunately, states with online gaming can bring in some revenue thanks to online betting and casinos. However, not every state is that far in the process, and states could face deeper budget deficits since no online revenue is coming in.

Casinos hope that this is only temporary and reopen after the 14-day closure period is over.