Chicago Council Rejects Citywide Sweepstakes Ban

On Wednesday the Chicago City Council voted 33-15 to reject a proposal that would have banned sweepstakes machines across the city, preserving an estimated 7,000 devices that resemble slot machines but award free play and coupons rather than cash.

Alderman Anthony Beale introduced the ban, saying the terminals operate outside Illinois’ regulated gaming framework and divert revenue from licensed operators. He told the council, ‘There are some areas of the city that have 20 to 30 machines in a gas station. That’s a mini-casino operating illegally that we’re not getting a dime from.’

Supporters of the ban said sweepstakes devices reduce traffic to regulated venues and do not generate comparable tax revenue. Opponents, led by Alderman Jason Ervin, said a prohibition would harm small businesses in predominantly African American neighborhoods that have limited access to other gaming or cannabis opportunities. Ervin argued the measure would remove one of the few gaming-related revenue options available to those owners and warned it would do harm to their communities.

City officials described enforcement challenges. Ivan Capifali, commissioner of the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, told aldermen the city lacks clear legal authority and the resources needed to remove the machines, and inspectors sometimes rely on unrelated code violations to address operators.

The vote came after the City Council authorized video gambling terminals, or VGTs, in the 2026 budget. City estimates project roughly $6.8 million in annual revenue from video gambling licenses if about 3,300 establishments install terminals. Supporters of VGT legalization say the terminals create regulated revenue; critics say unregulated sweepstakes operations could undercut licensed venues.

Mayor Brandon Johnson and several aldermen have opposed broad VGT legalization, arguing the machines could divert players and revenue from Bally’s planned permanent casino and might conflict with terms of the city’s host community agreement. The mayor has noted that slot revenue is taxed at about four times the VGT rate in Illinois.

Bally’s sent a letter to the council before the vote warning that large-scale VGT deployment would ‘fundamentally alter’ the economics of its casino agreement and could require renegotiation. The company said it could pursue legal remedies and estimated that extensive VGT legalization might reduce city revenue by $74 million a year and put up to 1,050 jobs at risk. Bally’s also cited a potential maximum of nearly 19,800 VGTs citywide under current rules.

With the council rejecting the ban, sweepstakes machines remain in operation while city lawmakers, officials and industry groups continue to debate how to regulate both sweepstakes devices and newly authorized VGTs, weighing revenue, enforcement capacity and equity concerns.