On Opening Day, some Cubs fans lean into sports betting boom while others remain wary

Logan Reilly’s group chat with his friends was lighting up Thursday, the same as every year, for Major League Baseball’s Opening Day.

But this time, the chatter was about which bets to place.

“Three years ago, we're just talking about who we think’s going to win,” Reilly said outside Wrigley Field ahead of the Chicago Cubs game against the Washington Nationals. “But now we're talking about do we think Nico Hoerner’s going to get on base? For the Mets game, do we think Juan Soto’s going to hit a home run?”

Reilly is among millions of fans who have jumped into the betting arena as the pastime has become inseparable from sports entertainment. Betting ads litter stadiums and television broadcasts. Sportsbooks are opening at ballparks including Wrigley Field. And gambling is as easy as ever on mobile apps.

Illinois legalized sports gambling in early 2020 and has seen participation soar in the years since. More than 26.3 million sports bets have already been placed in Illinois in 2026, the vast majority of them online, according to the Illinois Gaming Board.

“It's one of the most wild things I've ever seen,” Reilly said. “The demand for it has just absolutely skyrocketed.

“I don't bet too often. I bet when I'm confident, I'd say. But we all know how that goes sometimes,” he added. “If you feel that you're not doing it responsibly, then you should probably take a step back.”

Fans who took the Red Line “L” train to the game Thursday likely saw a DraftKings advertisement under the Addison stop near Wrigley.

“I think it's way too accessible,” Jerry Evans said of sports gambling as he headed into the Cubs game with his teenage son Jake.

While Evans, 54, said he isn't entirely opposed to betting, he doesn't do it because he doesn't want to lose his “hard-earned money.” He worries about younger people in particular falling victim to gambling addiction.

“I think it's going to get only worse — people possibly even claiming bankruptcy, not being able to pay their bills,” Evans said.

Evans also thinks betting might be affecting the actual games. Several recent scandals involving athletes altering their performance to win bets have rocked some fans’ confidence in the integrity of sports — though sports rigging scandals date back decades.

Jake Evans, 17, said sports betting has grown popular among his peers who are becoming more engaged with sports than they otherwise would have been.

“They feel more interested about watching sports, and they care more, especially because they're putting money on it,” he said. “And, obviously, they're bragging about winning money off of sports betting, which kind of piques people's interests.”

Matt Neenan, who was attending the Cubs game with his wife Lisa and her parents, said he has placed a couple bets before, but he worries about the growing prevalence of betting among young men in particular.

“It's a casino in a pocket, which isn't good for anybody,” he said. “I think it's getting people addicted to it because it's too easy and too accessible. So it's gamified and too easy for young people to get sucked into it.”

Fans attending games at Wrigley Field can bet on their phones like anyone else — or they can head down to the DraftKings Sportsbook that opened at the ballpark during the 2023 baseball season.

Reilly was sitting with his sister in Gallagher Way outside Wrigley Field a couple hours before the game while they waited for Reilly’s brother and mom, who had walked over to the sportsbook to place a few small bets for him.

What were his picks for the day?

“I went for a [Cubs third basemen Alex] Bregman hit, a Nico Hoerner hit and the Cubs to win,” he said. “Go Cubs.”