The legal background of IL online casinos
Real money online casinos are yet to be legalized in IL, which in recent years has led to an influx of Illinois sweepstake casinos, where Illinoisians can place wagers using virtual coins instead of cash.
Before we look at the legal alternatives, here are a few legislative highlights in Prairie State gambling history:
- 1920s – Horse race betting is legalized.
- 1974 – Illinois rolls out the first US state lottery.
- 1990 – The Riverboat Gambling Act becomes law, enabling riverboat casinos to operate along IN waterways.
- 2009 – The Video Gaming Act allows for Video Gaming Terminals (VGTs) to be used in liquor-licensed establishments.
- 2019 – The Illinois Gambling Act theoretically legalizes online betting in IN, though the issue of online casino-related gambling is never directly addressed.
- 2022 – While online video slots and lottery games are available, online casinos remain prohibited.
Currently, there is no regulation or licensing available for online casinos in Illinois, which is why residents are increasingly seeking out alternatives, such as sweeps casino sites.
Enjoy your favorite games at Illinois sweepstake casinos
Sweepstakes casinos offer Illinoisians a way of playing all their beloved online casino games in a 100% legal way, but how? Illinois sweepstake casinos simulate Vegas-style slots and table games online but require players to place wagers using virtual coins instead of USD. This enables residents to enjoy online casino gaming without breaking any laws.
One popular social casino in the state is Stake.us, where you can sign up to play hundreds of cash-free games in minutes.
As virtual currencies take the place of real gaming chips at Stake.us and similar sites, you don’t have to risk any actual cash as you play, making sweepstakes sites the perfect place to practise your skills, or enjoy it in its own right. Stake.us takes things a step further by offering social casino games, too, where you can compete against your social media buddies in real time.
Stake.us – our pick of the best Illinois sweepstake casinos
There are a whole bunch of sweeps betting sites available to gamers in IL, but Stake.us stands out. Here are five reasons you should play with Stake.us today:
1 – Superb game selection
Stake.us offers access to more than 200 sweepstakes games, which are made up of slots, table games, live dealer betting experiences and one-of-a-kind Stake Originals titles.
We’ll touch on this in a little more detail later, but Stake.us trumps other Illinois social casinos in the promo department, too – offering quickfire bonuses that are straightforward to claim.
3 – The best software in the business
Not only is the Stake.us game selection diverse and varied, it’s also packed full of familiar games powered by the biggest software names in online gaming. Pragmatic Play, Hacksaw Gaming and more all make the cut.
4 – Frequent tournaments and giveaways
Regular tournaments, gaming contests and social casino events are promoted via Stake.us social media – sometimes daily.
Stake.us social casino games can be played either with Gold Coins or Stake Cash. While the former are used purely for fun, the latter are exchangeable for cash prizes.
It’s common for Stake.us and other Illinois social casinos to target new customers with sign-up bonuses, but remember that any promotion you see advertised on a sweeps site will be serving up virtual coins instead of in-game cash.
Right now, Stake.us has multiple special offers available in IL, including a one-off promotion exclusively for TheGruelingTruth.com readers. Here are the best offers you’re going to want to know about:
By registering a new Stake.us account and entering the promo code “TGTSOCIAL”, Illinoisians can claim 5% rakeback on eligible social casino games.
Daily login bonus
All players at Stake.us can unlock free Gold Coins on a daily basis simply by signing into their account and playing once a day or more.
Postcard bonus
If you mail a written postal request to the Stake.us headquarters in Dallas, Texas, using a 6” by 4” blank postcard, you can get 5x Stake Cash coins. Just be sure to stamp it and send it from within IL.
Are Stake.us and other Illinois social casinos good for customer service?
Stake.us offers round-the-clock customer support that you can contact as and whenever you please via the following channels:
Live chat
Where you can communicate with both Stake.us service operatives and other players.
Stake.us is 100% contactable via Instagram or Twitter – and also uses these platforms to launch new promotions.
You can use our social casino comparisons to see how the Stake.us service offering stacks up against what’s offered by competitors.
Conclusion – Illinois is home to top social and sweepstakes casinos
We’ve established that the Prairie State isn’t going to provide you with legal real money online casino action. But, hopefully, we’ve managed to highlight the many perks of playing at a social and sweepstakes casino instead.
As discussed, social and sweepstakes casinos are considered legal in Illinois because they fall into a different bracket to real money online gambling. They allow all players the option to play for fun or cash prizes and players never need to make a purchase to play.
We feel that the combination of our exclusive bonus, over 300 casino titles and daily rewards are reason enough to cement Stake.us as a top alternative to Illinois online casino gambling. However, we’ve also conjured up plenty of additional social and sweepstakes casino reviews to help you make your own mind up.
Check out our picks of the best social casino bonuses
1.
5% Rakeback
Players from Virginia accepted
2.
30 SCs on 1st Purchase + 4.5 SCs FREE + 30 Sweepstake Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
Min. Deposit: 9.99
3.
Get $5 extra in FREE play
Players from Virginia accepted
4.
7,000 Gold Coins + 10 Sweeps Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
5.
5,000 Gold Coins + 2.3 Sweepstakes Coins
Players from Virginia accepted
