EAST PEORIA, Ill. – March is a busy month for betting in Illinois, but some groups and operators do have concerns.
The state gaming board says in March 2022, the Par-A-Dice Casino in East Peoria brought in more than $15 million in bets on college sports. That’s compared to just nearly $400,000 in March 2021.
A majority of those bets came from online wagering. Bill Johnson, Executive Director of the Illinois Council on Problem Gambling, tells 25 News that concerns him.
“A person can sit on the couch, be driving down the road, anything, and hit that button and place a bet on if the next batter for the Cubs going to get a single, or a double or a triple,” Johnson said.
Johnson adds that around 383,000 people in the state have a gambling disorder.
DraftKings is one of the operators allowed in Illinois. Sports Operation Director Johnny Avello says they are aware of a gambling problem, and are being proactive about it.
“The staff is trained to look for certain red flags,” Avello tells 25 News. “And then when we do see those, we act on them.”
DraftKings also addresses the problem by limiting wagers and parlays that people can make.
