Greed meets greed: DraftKings to close its Wrigley Field sportsbook at the end of May over Illinois tax
Just two years later, DraftKings announced it would shut down its Wrigley Field sports betting site on May 31. DraftKings trashed Illinois’ sports gambling tax structure in a statement published in the Chicago Tribune.
While we’re proud of what we’ve built with the Chicago Cubs, we’re taking a more focused approach to where we invest in the state. The cost of operating in Illinois, including the high tax structure, makes continued investment in an independent retail sportsbook even more difficult to justify.
The Illinois “tax structure” that DraftKings referenced in its Chicago Tribune statement is a 25-cent tax on the first 20 million annual internet-based bets, then 50 cents thereafter, effective July 1, 2025.
DraftKings announced Monday that it will close its sportsbook at Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs, effective May 31. (Jill Connelly/Bloomberg)
CLEARLY, THE ILLINOIS GOVERNMENT WILL RUIN SPORTS BETTING FOR RESIDENTS
All the fun won’t stop at DraftKings’ Wrigley Field location. The restaurant, bar and sports entertainment facility will remain open.
I’m confident Wi-Fi will be stronger than ever to help customers place bets through the DraftKings app. Admittedly, this doesn’t address the real issue because the tax applies to internet betting, not to bets placed in person.
In this photo illustration, the DraftKings online betting app logo is displayed on a smartphone screen. (Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images)
It’s hard to feel bad for anyone here. I certainly don’t feel bad for DraftKings, which “floods the area with incessant marketing” and preys on addicts and college students.
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So is the Illinois state government, whose laws force licensed sports betting operators to pass the tax on to their customers. This type of tax would push gamblers into illegal betting through offshore sports betting and organized crime.
Also, based on my brief research on social media for this story, Illinois residents had mixed reactions to the Boston-based gaming company closing its Wrigley Field location.
Sports betting at Circa Resort & Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada is featured ahead of Super Bowl LVIII on February 10, 2024. (Mario Hommes/DeFodi Images)
Some say this is another example of Illinois, its governor, JB Pritzker, and Democrats in general being bad for business. Others called the location a national landmark eyesore and said sports betting harms the community.
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Ultimately, the closure of Wrigley Field reveals a complex conflict between corporate interests and state taxation. While these physical windows are closing, the debate over the social costs of sports gambling is far from over.
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