Caesars and Bet365 Announce New Fees for Illinois Bettors

This football betting season is going to be a bit more expensive for bettors in Illinois.

Caesars and bet365 have both added a surcharge of $0.25 for every sportsbook wager accepted in the Land of Lincoln, though the latter will only apply it to wagers under $10. The move is in response to Illinois’ per-bet tax, which went into effect over the summer. The surcharges went live before the NFL season kicked off last night.

All ten Illinois sportsbooks have now made changes to offset Illinois’ controversial new tax.

Illinois Bettors Suffering Over Tax Battle

The tensions between Illinois lawmakers and sportsbooks have been running high for over a year now. The state switched its annual tax system in 2024, leading to all operators seeing their rates go up. Sportsbooks initially complained but ultimately accepted the change. However, they were unwilling to do so again this year when the state enacted a small tax ranging between $0.25 and $0.50 on each wager accepted.

Unfortunately, Illinois bettors have been the biggest victims of the tax war. They will feel that effect even more this fall, which is the busiest betting season of the year. Whether it is a minimum bet requirement or a surcharge, the average bettor in the state will end up spending more this football season.

New Fees for Each Illinois Sportsbook

With all ten online sportsbooks in Illinois taking action against the tax, it is important for bettors to keep up with the changes. Here is a table showing the changes each operator has made for the football season:

Are Lawmakers Losing This Fight?

When lawmakers passed the per-bet tax, the belief was that many sportsbooks would levy threats, but ultimately buckle under the pressure to compete. This would not only lead to more tax revenue but also severely damage the industry’s negotiating power. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Now lawmakers are going to have to keep bettors (who are also voters) happy ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The sports betting industry has done a good job painting lawmakers as greedy politicians looking to force sportsbooks to cover for their own budget mistakes. That is resonating with many bettors, especially now that fees and minimum bet requirements are in play.

Sportsbooks have promised to reverse their recent changes if the per-bet limit dropped, but it may not be that easy. If lawmakers back down, operators will know their tactic worked and could come after the annual tax next. That puts pressure on them to hold the line, but time will tell if public pressure changes that.