Update on Sports Betting Around the U.S.

During this past week, several interesting pieces of sports betting news came out of Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, and Wyoming. Also, it looks like cruise lines leaving out of U.S. ports are looking to get a part of the sports betting action.

Connecticut Disses PayPal as a Banking Alternative

With all three of Connecticut's online and retail sports betting operators moving to full service, sports bettors are looking for the most convenient banking options. According to officials from DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sports, and SugarHouse Sports, bookmakers will be allowed to accept deposits and issue withdrawals through many of the same banking options that are available in most other states.

The approved banking options for Connecticut's online gambling operators will be Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover Debit card, Automated Clearing House (ACH), and Play Near Me. Two key banking options are not on this list, those being the highly popular PayPal and Venmo. No explanation has been provided regarding these exclusions. Sportsbook customers will also be restricted to listing a single credit card for both deposits and withdrawals. Standard banking limits will be used.

Illinois Closing in on Selecting Host City for South Suburban Casino

In recent weeks, the Illinois Gaming Board has been sifting through proposals from a number of Southern Illinois cities for the right to build and host a retail casino. Along with the rights to host a retail casino, the facility's owners would likely get a sports betting license.

Heading into October, four cities were in the running: Matteson, Homeland, Calumet City, and Lynwood. The former two have now been eliminated from consideration, leaving proposals from Matteson and Homeland as the finalist. Matteson is looking for approval to build a 200-room hotel and $300 million casino with 1,300 slots and 42 table games. Homeland is countering with a proposal for a $440 million casino and 252-room luxury hotel with 1,350 slot machines and 56 table games.

The Illinois Gaming Board is looking to make a decision by January 1, 2022.

Other Sports Gambling News

In other sports gambling news from around the U.S., it looks like a majority of the riverboat casinos in Louisiana will be looking to open their sports betting windows by November 1, 2021. Hurricane activity in the state delayed the licensing process, but it looks like the Louisiana Gaming Control Board will be issuing licenses by the end of October for at least 13 of 20 riverboat operations.

In Wyoming, sports bettors are currently limited to two online sports betting operators, those being BetMGM Sportsbook and DraftKings Sportsbook. According to WY Gaming Commission representative David Carpenter, another licensee could be approved by November 5, 2021. The possible top names under consideration are FanDuel Sportsbook or Barstool Sportsbook (Penn National Gaming).

Finally, Princess Cruises recently announced they have accepted their first legal sports bet through their new Ocean Sportsbook. Look for this trend to continue as cruise lines can apply for licensing to accept bets when docked in ports adjacent to states where sports betting is legal.