DraftKings Taking Action Against Illinois Sports Betting

DraftKings is not a fan of the proposed Illinois sports betting changes. They are opening their piggy banks to prove it, too.

Okay, really, it is more like the company scrounging between its couch cushions for loose change. Million-dollar investments are drops in the bucket to billion-dollar entities. But the fact that DraftKings is taking financial action against possible tax hikes and additional regulatory practices for sports betting in Illinois is notable regardless of how much it costs. It just so happens that it’s costing the company more than $1 million.

As Matthew Cunningham-Cook writes for In These Times, the sports betting giant is funneling a good chunk of change into swaying the outcomes of local Illinois elections:

“American Future, a super PAC bankrolled by DraftKings’ wholly owned subsidiary, DK Crown Holdings, is spending big—$1.2 million—in the Democratic primaries for Illinois legislative seats, according to reporting from Capitol Fax and the latest campaign finance filings. Intent on electing representatives who will resist further taxes on the gaming industry, the PAC has become the largest outside spender so far in the Illinois state legislative primary slated for March 17.”

This follows a growing trend for online sports betting sites in the United States. More and more are investing into individual markets with the hope of shaping policy. It is not limited to matters like tax hikes and regulatory measures. They are attempting to influence legalization pushes in general.

We most recently saw this for sports betting in Missouri. Online sportsbooks helped fund a ballot measure that was anchored around a petition signed by constituents. And if you’ll recall, sportsbooks spent millions of dollars campaigning for California sports betting legalization back in 2022.

The question here, though: With Illinois sports betting already legal, what is DraftKings campaigning against.

Why DraftKings is Taking Exception to Illinois Sports Betting Rules

A number of things are drawing the ire of Illinois online sportsbooks like DraftKings. Chief among them is the extra costs of doing business.

Last year, The Prairie State implemented a $0.25 trade on every single bet placed. According to the Center for Media and Democracy, Illinois sports betting volume “plummeted” by 15 percent following its introduction.

Beyond that, DraftKings and others are not happy with the way The Prairie State assesses its overall taxes. Here is Cunningham-Cook again with more details on the matter:

“The industry is particularly incensed about the way Illinois has chosen to structure its tax on sports betting. Instead of taxing winnings as in most other states, it collects taxes on a per-bet basis, which in turn has led to the decrease in betting. ‘[T]his is the only jurisdiction across all 30 states with online sports betting where this is actually happening,’Joe Maloney, head of the national Sports Betting Alliance, told Peoria-based 25News, an ABC affiliate. The state’s tax per wager is also coupled with local taxes, as in Chicago, where progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson has assessed a 10.25 percent sports betting tax under a new licensing law — one that the Sports Betting Alliance is challenging as unconstitutional.”

Chicago’s local tax, in particular, has angered sports betting operators. They aren’t alone, either. Lawmakers in Illinois aren’t thrilled with regional tax rates. They believe it creates a more decentralized industry across the state. It also, as we are seeing now, makes it harder to implement additional state-wide taxes.

The DraftKings-Led Super PAC has Plenty of Leverage

If you go through all of the names receiving funding from the DraftKings-led super PAC, you will be unsurprised to find that it’s inundated with candidates who have a corporation-friendly track record. One of them, state senator Emil Jones III, was even indicted on federal bribery charges back in 2022.

Corporations have always influenced elections and subsequent policies. That was true long before Illinois sports betting. It will remain true long after. And in this case, the sportsbooks may have more leverage—all thanks to the rise of prediction markets.

The aforementioned prediction markets are billed as sports betting alternatives. They essentially offer the same opportunity to put money on sport competitions while being subject to looser federal regulation. DraftKings and FanDuel have even launched their own prediction markets. They have limited their operations to states without legal sports betting, but they could theoretically leverage pivoting to them instead of active sports betting licenses.

To be sure, this would be a dramatic ploy. Prediction-market operators predominantly make their money off per-transaction fees. Sportsbooks are able to operate as The House, and rake in all the money off losing wagers.

Still, if Illinois sports betting volume really is on the decline, it could be a lever they pull. It is not necessarily unprecedented either. Underdog just shuddered domestic sportsbook operations in favor of exclusively running prediction markets.

The State of Illinois Sports Betting Could be Heading Toward a Crossroads

It feels like Illinois sports betting is speeding toward a reckoning of sorts no matter what happens during the primaries.

If the DraftKings-supported candidates win, we could see Illinois walk back some of their more aggressive sports betting policies. If they lose, we could see sportsbooks accept the current state of play. We could also see them look to push back through alternative means, such as the one outlined above. Or maybe we see them redouble their campaign-funding efforts ahead of the 2028 elections.

So go ahead and circle March 17, 2026 on your calendar. Or rather, make it March 18. The results of Illinois primaries should be settled by then, at which point we’ll have a better idea of where this fight stands.

Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can find one that works for all of your sports betting needs: