In response to Illinois' per-bet tax on sports betting, Circa Sports is implementing a $10 minimum wager requirement on its Illinois customers.
Circa's action comes on the heels of other sportsbooks in Illinois now requiring minimum betting amounts, though Circa's $10 amount is significantly higher than any so far.
The mandatory minimum was prompted by Illinois adding a $.25-.50 per-bet tax for operators on top of its 20-40% charge on adjusted gaming revenue.
Fire meets fire
Circa Sports is known for being one of the most customer-focused sportsbooks, with high limits, unlimited bets, and low vigorish fees. The sportsbook is a favorite of “sharp” and professional bettors despite being much smaller than most of its commercial competitors.
Circa Sports CEO Derek Stevens confirmed the new policy on Aug. 15 in a post on X. He said the new policy begins Sept. 1.
“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.”
Stevens’ mention of a per-bet fee was a reference to FanDuel, DraftKings, and Fanatics, all of which answered Illinois’ new per-wager fee with one of their own for customers. FanDuel and DraftKings users now need to pay an additional $.50 for every wager they place, while Fanatics customers must pay an extra $.25.
Circa Sports typically operates with a much lower hold percentage than other sportsbooks. Stevens told the Missouri Gaming Commission, which recently approved the sportsbook for an untethered operator’s license, that the company has around a 3.5% hold, whereas larger operators tend to stick closer to 10%.
Because Circa’s customer base is mostly composed of bettors with larger bankrolls, Stevens does not expect the $10 minimum to alter the gaming experience for too many of his company’s customers.
“We focus on bigger bets, bigger volume, bigger handle.”
Sportsbooks take action against Illinois
Illinois’ decision to implement a first-of-its-kind per-bet tax was not met with a kind reception from members of the gambling industry, particularly with its already-burdensome tax rate.
On Vegas Stats & Information Network’s “Follow the Money” show in June, Stevens hinted at the possibility of adding a betting minimum.
“You can kiss those $1, $2, $5, $10 bets [goodbye]. Effectively, what it means is you’re gonna have to raise minimums, particularly for low-hold operators. If we try to hold 3%, by the time we’ve got to pay the federal excise tax, and then we have to pay a fee to be an authorized gaming operator with MLB and others, and then you throw this tax on, there’s nothing there. There’s no reason to take a bet less than 10 bucks.”
Stevens also confessed that he likely would not have adapted Circa’s low-hold model had he known about the per-bet tax when his company entered the market in September 2023.
BetMGM, Hard Rock Bet, ESPN Bet, and BetRivers have already introduced minimum bet amounts of $2.50, $2, $1, and $1, respectively, in Illinois.
With Circa’s change, only two sportsbooks, Caesars and bet365, have not announced responses to Illinois’ per-bet tax.