Only wager at approved Illinois sportsbooks for Super Bowl: Gaming Board

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — While the Super Bowl is a common time for betting, officials at one state advisory board are warning against using unauthorized ways to bet.

The Illinois Gaming Board warns against using unlicensed sportsbooks to place bets as only approved places will guarantee fairness and betting in a safe and responsible manner.

“Unlike licensed sportsbooks, unlawful actors do not undergo strict suitability reviews and background investigations,” IGB administrator Marcus Fruchter said. “These illegal operators do not contribute tax revenue to our communities. They maintain no age verification requirements to protect minors, no controls to prevent money laundering, and no guarantees that customers will receive fair payouts.”

The full list of authorized and legal Illinois sportsbook operators can be found on IGB’s website.

For games like the Super Bowl, Illinois allows only placing side bets on people’s actions under the NFL or people subject to the NFL’s Integrity Policy. This means no official side bets can be placed on how many times Taylor Swift will be shown on the broadcast, nor the length of the National Anthem.

Side bets can be placed on player or in-game statistics, as well as objective player or in-game statistics in relation to an objective non-game statistic. In addition, wagers can bet on the color of Gatorade dumped on the winning coach and the outcome of the coin flip at the start of the game.

The IGB revealed at its first meeting of the year more than $11.6 billion was wagered on Illinois sports wagering market in 2023. The bets generated more than $150 million in tax revenues for the state.