Sports betting will continue in Chicago after gambling companies dropped their legal fight to immediately halt implementation of the new licensing law.
The lawsuit by the Sports Betting Alliance had asked for an emergency court order to block the law, threatening to halt betting because its members hadn’t been licensed to operate in the new year under the new law.
But since the suit was filed Tuesday, the alliance reported Wednesday, all five of its members — bet365, BetMGM, DraftKings, Fanatics Sportsbook and FanDuel — were licensed by the city of Chicago.
The lawsuit against the city will continue, challenging the constitutionality of the city’s new licensing requirement and 10.25% tax on online sports betting revenues.
The tax is projected to raise $26 million to help close the city’s budget gap of more than $1 billion.
The alliance argues that the state constitution only authorizes the state, not the city, to conduct such licensing and taxation.
Illinois already levies taxes of 20% to 40% on sports bets, plus fees of 25 to 50 cents per wager.
Proposed legislation in Springfield would prohibit municipalities from imposing taxes on sports betting.
