Illinois attorney general says daily fantasy is gambling, tells sites to leave

Illinois has added its name to the list of US states that believe daily fantasy sports is gambling and thus illegal under state law.

On Wednesday, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan (pictured) issued an opinion (read it here) stating her belief that DFS contests were an illegal gambling activity. Madigan said she expects major DFS operators like DraftKings and FanDuel to amend their terms of use to include Illinois in the list of states from which the sites don’t accept customers.

Madigan notes that Illinois’ Criminal Code prohibits playing “games of chance or skill for money” and bars anyone from operating an internet site that facilitates such activity. There are certain exemptions from this prohibition, but Madigan believes the exemption cited by the DFS operators “does not apply.”

Illinois gambling law exempts contests in which “the actual contestants” compete for some prize, award or compensation, but Madigan says DFS players win or lose based on the performance of the actual athletes playing a sport, which she says is no different from traditional sports wagering.