Circa Raises Minimum Bet in Illinois Due to Per-Bet Transaction Fee

Circa recently announced it will be raising its minimum bet amount to $10 as a measure to combat the state’s recent per-bet fee implemented on all mobile sportsbooks in the state.

Fighting Back

Illinois has not been a welcome environment for sportsbooks lately. Last year, the governor and the legislature hiked the tax rate on sportsbooks from 15% to a tiered system that ranged from 20% for those platforms that generated the least revenue to 40% for those that produced the highest revenue.

New Per-Bet Tax Implemented

However, during this legislative session, a per-bet tax was implemented in which those mobile sportsbooks that took in 20 million bets or under would be taxed at 25 cents per wager accepted, while anything more than 20 million would be assessed at 50 cents per bet.

Sportsbooks Push Back

This immediately sparked backlash from the major sportsbooks, with FanDuel announcing a 50-cent per bet fee to its customers, followed within days by DraftKings adopting the same measure. In other words, the biggest sportsbooks in the nation were passing the tax along to their customers with the promise to rescind the fee once the legislature does the same.

Other sportsbooks in the Prairie State have announced a 25 percent fee on wagers, while Circa recently announced that it is raising its minimum bet to $10 in Illinois. These are all measures to combat the per-bet fee implemented by the legislature, and the hope is that the customers will call their state reps and senators to complain. Implementing a per-bet transaction fee is not good for business, and the sportsbooks would be more than happy to rescind their policies in response to this fee.

“After thoughtful consideration, we believe the best course of action for a low-hold, high-volume sportsbook such as Circa Sports is to raise the minimum wager in Illinois. We are reluctant to compromise our best-in-class betting splits or charge our customers a per-bet fee,” said Derek Stevens, CEO at Circa Sports, on X.

Illinois Cracking Down on Funding and Advertising

Illinois has not only gone after the pocketbooks of sportsbooks operating in its state, but it has also recently imposed a few other measures that are not conducive to maximizing sportsbooks’ profits.

In April, the Illinois Gaming Board (IGB) formally approved a proposal that prohibits the use of credit cards to fund online sports betting accounts.

“As part of our review, we determined that prohibiting the use of credit cards to fund sports wagering accounts is a justified and impactful advancement in Illinois sports wagering,” said Illinois Gaming Board Administrator Marcus D. Fruchter. “There is a growing body of recent research showing that restrictions on credit usage to fund wagering accounts encourages responsible gambling and mitigates the harms of compulsive gambling.”

Ban on Advertising on College Campuses

Moreover, a ban went into effect on August 1st, 2025, banning broadcast, digital, and print advertising on college campuses in Illinois. It is a step to protect those most vulnerable, according to the Illinois Gaming Board.

Gaming Board Administrator Marcus D. Fruchter said in a statement, “By adopting these measures, the IGB is building upon existing regulations to implement additional safeguards and standards that further protect the public and encourage responsible gambling habits. These regulations provide for clear, consistent, ethical, and transparent advertising and marketing guidelines for all casino, video gaming, and sports wagering operations under IGB jurisdiction.”