Illinois lawmakers are continuing a push to outlaw sports betting at entertainment establishments like Dave & Buster’s.
Last year, Dave & Buster’s unveiled a plan to allow customers to compete for real money against one another in games like Hot Shots basketball and Skee-Ball on its app. Illinois Sen. Bill Cunningham’s HB 2724 passed through the Senate Executive Committee last week to prohibit the practice that could be seen as Illinois sports betting.
“We’ve been extremely careful with how we regulate gambling in Illinois, whether that is on sports, table games or video poker,” Cunningham said in a release. “Arcades marketing as family fun shouldn’t be in the business of exposing minors to gambling.”
After Dave & Buster’s announced its new offering, lawmakers and regulators in Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania looked to take action against it.
Not the first attempt
Last year, Illinois Rep. Dan Didech unveiled the Family Amusement Wagering Prohibition Act. The bill died after advancing beyond its initial committee.
Dave & Buster’s argues that its offering is a game of skill. The company also avoids using the terms “bet” and “wager.”
“The company is planning to operate this, leaning heavily into what they say is a distinction of games of chance and games of skill,” Didech said. “That’s a dichotomy I reject. And as legislators and regulators across the country take a look at this, we should be active in rejecting that.”
“Every game has an element of skill or chance. You can play blackjack, a game everyone agrees is gambling, in a more skillful and less skillful way.”
Illinois sports betting
Illinois sports betting launched in March 2020 but took some time to ramp up due to the COVID-19 pandemic and in-person sign-up requirements for online sports betting.
It is now one of the largest US sports betting markets. Since launch, sportsbooks have taken more than $47 billion in wagers and generated $4 billion in sports betting revenue.
The state has collected more than $47 million in taxes.
