Illinois Horse Racing Betting

Illinois horse racing betting is legal for state residents who are 18 or older.

Customers can bet on horse races online through licensed advanced deposit wagering operators (ADWs) or in-person at race tracks and off-track betting facilities (OTBs).

Illinois Horse Racing Betting Sites

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Section 26(g) of the Illinois Horse Racing Act of 1975 expressly authorizes online horse racing betting, unlike many states where the law is unclear. Customers who are at least 18 years old, residents of Illinois, and physically located within state lines may bet with licensed ADWs.

The Illinois Racing Board (IRB) oversees live racing and pari-mutuel wagers in all its forms across the state. Illinois formed the IRB in 1933, and its duties include issuing licenses to ADWs that offer online and mobile betting, ensuring the integrity of pari-mutuel wagering, collecting taxes, distributing revenue, and more.

The IRB also maintains a list of licensed ADWs that bettors can view here to confirm the status of any betting site’s license. Most major horse racing betting sites hold Illinois licenses and offer their services to residents:

Online Racebooks in Illinois

Online horse racing betting is a healthy industry in Illinois, with the state’s licensed ADWs processing hundreds of millions of dollars in wagers every year. According to recent IRB reports, the total online betting handle easily exceeds $200 million and sometimes $300 million per year.

Illinois Horse Racetracks

Illinois is home to two major race tracks that host collectively host more than 200 thoroughbred and standardbred race days each year.

In addition to Illinois’ permanent race tracks, three state fairs have tracks that host annual harness races with pari-mutuel wagering.

Permanent IL Horse Race Tracks

  • FanDuel Sportsbook and Horse Racing: Formerly Fairmount Park Racetrack. April though September. 9301 Collinsville Road Collinsville, IL 62234
  • Hawthorne Race Course: March through December. 3501 S. Laramie
    Stickney/Cicero, IL 60804

IL State Fairs with Harness Racing

  • Illinois State Fair
  • Brown County Fair
  • DuQuoin State Fair

The state legislature did Illinois horse race tracks a big favor in 2019 by enacting a major gaming expansion bill. Among other things, the bill authorized tracks to install electronic gaming machines and table games, construct retail sportsbooks, and partner with third-party operators to offer online sports betting in Illinois.

The law was especially beneficial for the track formerly known as Fairmount Park, which reached a multi-faceted deal with FanDuel Sportsbook. Per the deal, FanDuel made a multi-million-dollar investment into Fairmount Park to upgrade its facilities, open an on-property retail sportsbook, and offer online sport betting. The agreement also led to the track changing its name from Fairmount Park to FanDuel Sportsbook and Horse Racing.

Major Illinois Horse Racing Events

  • St. Louis Derby: Fairmount Park stopped hosting the $250,000 St. Louis Derby in 2006 for financial reasons, but the track’s partnership with FanDuel breathed new life into the event. When Fairmount Park announced its partnership with FanDuel, the track announced it would restart the St. Louis Derby as a part of a “full revitalization” of the track.
  • Hawthorne Gold Cup and Illinois Derby: The Hawthorne Gold Cup and Illinois Derby once served as two of the state’s most prominent racing events of the year. Both were held at Hawthorne Race Course, but neither has run since 2017. As the IL horse racing industry expands thanks to expanded gambling and sports betting, there is a chance one or both returns in the near future. Keep an eye on this page for updates.

Illinois Off-Track Betting Locations

The Illinois Horse Racing Act permits each of the state’s two permanent race tracks to operate a limited number of OTBs that provide live horse racing simulcasts and parimutuel wagering at locations throughout the state.

Below is a list of Illinois OTB locations:

  • Alton: Time Out OTB at Mac’s Downtown
  • Crestwood: Club Hawthorne
  • Evergreen Park: Black Eyed Susan
  • Hoffman Estates: The Saddle Room
  • Joliet: Black Eyed Susan
  • Lansing: Black Eyed Susan
  • McHenry: Salerno’s Pizzeria
  • Mokena: Stoney Point Grill
  • Oakbrook Terrace: Pony Up
  • Prospect Heights: Player’s Pub & Grill
  • Rockford: Don Carter Lanes
  • Sauget: Route 3 OTB
  • Springfield: Capital Teletrack
  • Villa Park: Crazy Pour

Chicago Racetracks and OTBs

Residents in the Chicago area suffer no shortage of horse racing betting options. Licensed ADWs in Illinois provide wagering on the go via any mobile device while multiple race tracks and OTBs provide in-person betting.

For live racing action, Chicagoans have Hawthorne Race Course to the west in the Cicero area, less than an hour’s drive from Downtown Chicago depending on traffic.

Fans can also visit several OTBs with simulcasting and parimutuel wagering in the Chicago area:

  • Downtown Chicago: Club Hawthorne Evergreen Park
  • South Chicago: Club Hawthorne Crestwood
  • Southwest Chicago: Club Hawthorne Mokena

Illinois Online Horse Racing Betting Law

Illinois legalized pari-mutuel horse racing betting in 1975 with the passage of the Illinois Horse Racing Act.

In its own words, the Act was passed “to benefit the people of the State of Illinois by encouraging the breeding and production of race horses, assisting the economic development and promoting Illinois tourism.”

Lawmakers formally legalized advance deposit wagering (online betting) in 2009 with SB 1298 to amend the Illinois Horse Racing Act. Online horse racing betting was already widespread in Illinois at the time, but SB 1298 formally legalized the activity and provided a means for the state to tax the activity and boost the local thoroughbred horse racing industry.

When lawmakers were debating SB 1298, supporters of the Illinois horse betting bill contended it would support the local horse racing industry, which had seen double-digit percentage declines in total horse racing betting handle over each of the last two years.

Total IL horse racing betting handles never recovered from the industry’s previous highs years before, but the industry is still much healthier in Illinois than in many other states today.

Additional online betting regulations are provided by 11 Ill. Adm. Code 325.10-80.

Illinois Horse Racing Betting FAQ

Yes. Illinois horse racing betting sites determine customer eligibility by their state of residence, not their current location.

If you are an Illinois resident, you may bet on horse races from anywhere, subject to local laws.

Illinois law requires a minimum age of 18 to bet on horses in-person or online.

Under IL state law, winning pari-mutuel betting slips are valid until December 31st of the following year.

Arlington International Racecourse ran its final race in September 2021 after Churchill Downs Inc. announced plans to sell the property. The Chicago Bears purchased the property for nearly $200 million with plans to replace the track with their new stadium.

The first clues that Arlington Park’s time was running short came in 2019, when Churchill Downs Inc. surprised and angered many in the horse racing community by declining to apply for a casino license after Illinois passed a major gambling expansion bill.

The decision caught many off guard because Churchill Downs had lobbied for the right to offer table games and slots to remain viable as a business. When lawmakers approved legislation that would have given Arlington Park its long-awaited chance to install slots and table games, Churchill Downs announced it would scrap its plans “with a heavy heart,” citing tax rates and increased competition in the area.

Yes. Fans can bet on the Kentucky Derby and other high-profile horse racing events via licensed advance-deposit wagering providers (ADWs). BettingUSA recommends fans to do their Kentucky Derby betting at TwinSpires.com, the official racebook of Churchill Downs.