Illinois sports bettors will be able to register new online accounts via their mobile following the news before the weekend that State Governor JB Pritzker has, for the second time, removed a ban on mobile registration.

News of the development follows the emergence of new restrictions for brick and mortar gaming facilities in a number of Illinois counties where cases of COVID-19 are said to be on the increase. These include shortened business hours and a 75% reduction in sites’ capacity, drastically restricting the number of customers playing on site and the ability of new bettors to get registered online.

Among those to respond to Pritzker’s lifting of the mobile registration ban was Jason Robins, DraftKings CEO and Co-Founder, who said on Twitter: “Less than 2 hours after being notified last night that mobile registration is back in IL, @DKSportsbook was ready to go. Moments later, the marketing machine turned on. So proud of the #DKNG team for rallying late on a Friday to get this done. Game on Illinois!”

The decision to reinstate mobile registration marks something of a volte-face for Pritzker who, last month, failed to include it as part of a number of executive orders issued in the face of the ongoing health crisis. It is also a victory for common sense given that many new customers looking to create new accounts would have faced lengthy journeys to do so.

With the Governor’s move to extend mobile betting registration until September 19, we can expect a sustained wave of promotional activity from the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel as they look to make hay while the sun shines and capture new customers.