Rivers Casino gets Illinois’ first land-based licence

The regulator from Illinois granted last week the first land-based casino licence to Rivers Casino for its Des Plaines facility.

US.- The gambling regulator in Illinois decided to grant its first land-based casino licence on a Thursday meeting. Rivers Casino obtained the approval from the Illinois Gaming Board for its Des Plaines facility.

The approval from the regulator means that Rivers Casino can now move the gambling operation to build a land-based facility. The operator was getting ready for a riverboat casino.

Rivers Casino will add 120 gaming positions, including slot machines and table games. The parts of the facility that aren’t located on water will experience significant changes in the next few weeks and the overall offering from the facility will increase 10%, Chicago Tribune informed.

Casino spokesman Patrick Skarrsaid that by going land-based, they can reconfigure some of the existing footprint not above water. He said they can add the games and positions within that, and then move forward with larger expansion plans.

Sports betting in Illinois

The gaming board said that the Thursday meeting that the application process for sports betting facilities will open next month. Each licence will have an initial fee of no more than US$10 million each, and three online-only licences will be available at US$20 million each.

Rivers is in the process of building a sports bar in Des Plains, which will eventually become a sportsbook, pending approval from the state.