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Despite being one of the world’s biggest sportsbooks, bet365 is still limited in the U.S. It’s currently only available in four states, with a potential expansion into two more by the end of the calendar year looming.
Will it ever come to Illinois? Right now, there’s nothing on the horizon, but we’ll break down the regulatory landscape in the Land of Lincoln, covering any possibility that the international betting giant comes to Illinois.
About bet365
bet365 is already one of the largest sports betting companies in the world, as it was founded in 2000 by Denise Coates before launching online in 2001. The Coates family had been in the sports betting business since the mid-1970s and used their experience with regulatory agencies and gambling to expand into the online sports betting market.
In 2005, bet365 sold its chain of retail betting locations and used the money to pay off its loans from the Royal Bank of Scotland.
The 2010s were an era of marketing expansion for bet365, as the company was able to ink a deal with Stoke City to become their shirt sponsor in 2012. In 2016, bet365 became the title sponsor for Stoke City’s stadium.
Both Denise Coates and her brother John still hold executive roles within the company.
bet365 announced plans to expand into the United States, following the landmark Supreme Court decision to overturn PASPA in 2018. That announcement was quickly followed by the launch of the bet365 sportsbook in New Jersey in early 2019.
Since then, the international betting giant has expanded into Iowa as well.
More on bet365 expansions
Where is bet365 operational?
As it stands, the European betting giant is only legal in four U.S. states: Colorado, New Jersey, Ohio and Virginia. bet365 has agreements with retail casinos in all four of the states it is operational, which could provide the structure for possible expansions.
Ohio and Virginia were the brand’s most recent launches, as bet365 debuted in those states in the early days of 2023. In Ohio, the sportsbook partnered with the Cleveland Guardians and in Virginia they partnered with the Hard Rock Casino.
New Jersey was the first state in which bet365 officially launched way back in 2019, where they partnered with Hard Casino. The book launched in Colorado in September 2022 in partnership with Century Casinos.
This year has been fruitful for the international betting giant though, as they secured licensing for Pennsylvania in January 2023, and are launched in Iowa earlier this summer.
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When could bet365 come to Illinois?
Currently, bet365 has no specific timetable for an expansion into the Land of Lincoln.
Despite the massive sports betting market in Illinois, many books have had trouble gaining entry into the state due to specific restrictions tethering online sportsbooks to retail locations.
It’s not even a matter of cost (although the licensing cost is high) -- there’s just no path in for many upstart books because there aren’t enough licenses available.
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bet365 State Expansions
Despite bet365 being one of the world’s largest sportsbooks, its move into U.S. markets has been slow and steady for the wagering giant.
As part of its future expansion into Pennsylvania, bet365 inked a deal with Churchill Downs Incorporated as a way of interjecting itself into the state’s betting market. The deal was up for grabs after Twinspires seized all sports betting operations and abandoned its license.
The multi-year deal, which was announced in January, is still subject to regulatory approval.
Additionally, bet365 could potentially expand into Iowa by the end of the calendar year.
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bet365 Current Promotions
Between bet365′s industry-leading new customer offer and its laundry list of existing user promotions, players will always have something to look forward to when placing action with the brand. Check out all of bet365′s ongoing promotions below.
New Customer Offer
Many players will be familiar with the structure of the New Customer Offer, as most sportsbooks offer some kind of signup promotion for new users. With this bet365 offer, new players can get up to $200 in bonus bets with a real-money wager of $1 or more.
To claim this offer, users need to make a deposit of $10 or more and place a bet at least $1 or more. Once that first bet settles, users will get $200 in bonus bets. Players can easily deploy them by selecting “Use Bonus Bets” in the bet slip.
Early Payout Offers
bet365 has a series of unique early payout promotions for hockey, baseball or basketball bettors. The framework of this promotion is straightforward: users will get straight bets paid out if the team they back —whether it be the White Sox, the Bulls or the Blackhawks — gains a 20 point advantage.
bet365 will payout users regardless of the final status of the game, as long as the team you back with your straight wager gets up by at least 20 points.
This promotion is also applicable to parlays, as users will get paid out if the team they’ve backed on the moneyline market of their parlay gets up by 20 points.
Multi Sport Parlay Bonus
bet365′s parlay bonus is an excellent option for bettors looking to string together a few legs to bolster their payout. With this promotion, bettors can get up to a 70 percent bonus for winning parlays on anything from an MMA bout to a hockey match.
Claiming this promotion is easy as users simply need to place a pre-game parlay of at least two legs on any two-way markets like spread/run or puck line, first half totals, second half spreads in any eligible league like the NBA, NFL, NHL or MLB.
If that wager is successful, bet365 will add between 5 to 70 percent to your take home, with the bonus amount corresponding to the number of legs in the parlay.
As per usual, only real wagers will qualify for this promotion. Any bonuses will be paid out in cash.
Bet Boosts
In addition to the myriad promotions bet365 has on offer, they also have generous boosts on a wide range of sports. Boosts will be marked by a green arrow with the boosted price displayed next to the original price, which will be crossed.
Users can simply click the boosted price to add it to their bet slip.
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bet365 Mobile App Review
Overall, users expressed their appreciation for the book as a whole but found the app a bit frustrating. There were some reports about the app crashing or struggles to find users’ locations.
Multiple users noted that the app ran smoothly during the first launch but subsequent updates have diminished the quality.
Despite these frustrations, users enjoyed the quick withdrawals and wide range of markets on a variety of different sports.
- Google Play Store rating: 2.4 stars -- May 2023
FAQ
Do users have to be a resident of a legal bet365 state to wager with bet365?
No, users do not need to be a resident of Colorado, New Jersey, Ohio or Virginia to wager with bet365. However, they must be within the respective state boundaries of a state in which bet365 is legal, which the book will verify using geo-location data.
Where is bet365 legal?
Currently, bet365 is legal in four U.S. states: Colorado, New Jersey, Ohio and Virginia. The U.K. betting giant did secure licensing for Pennsylvania in early 2023 and has noted a potential expansion in Iowa, though no timeline has be made available yet.
When will bet365 be available in Illinois?
At this point, bet365 has no immediate plans to expand into Illinois. That being said, the U.K. company has slowly begun expanding into other states. As noted above, they secured licensing for Pennsylvania and have repeatedly hinted that an expansion into Iowa could come before the end of calendar year.