Rosemont, which long sought its own casino under the late Mayor Donald Stephens only to be thwarted by the Illinois Gaming Board amid accusations of mob influence, could be back in the gambling hunt. 

The legislation allows for up to seven sports betting licenses to be issued to sports facilities that seat more than 17,000 persons. The Allstate Arena in Rosemont seats 18,500, making it one of eight sports venues in the state that would appear to qualify. 

The other seven are: Wrigley Field, Guaranteed Rate Field, Soldier Field, United Center, SeatGeek Stadium (Bridgeview), Chicagoland Speedway (Joliet) and World Wide Technology Raceway (Metro East). 

Gary Mack, a spokesman for Rosemont, confirmed the Allstate Arena qualifies for a sports betting license under the new law and will explore the possibility of applying.

“Yes, we’ll look at it. We’re not sure if we want it. It’s going to cost a heckuva lot of money,” Mack said, referring to fees that would be owed the state in addition to the cost of investing in a facility.