Harrah's Cherokee Sports Betting

One business day after N.C. Governor Roy Cooper signed legislation making sports betting legal for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Harrah’s Cherokee Casinos officials released their plans. The bill allows the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to open sportsbooks at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort and Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino & Hotel, and guest will soon be able to wager on collegiate and professional sports (as well as on off-track horse racing). What will it look like? The state is home to two sports betting lounges, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort and Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino & Hotel. These locations have picked Caesars to run their sports wagering operations with “The Book” as their sportsbook of choice. If you want to make a legal wager in North Carolina, the two casinos jointly run by Harrah’s and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in the towns of Cherokee and Murphy offer the sum of your options. Caesars welcomes those that are of legal casino gambling age to our website. CaesarsCasino.com is owned by Caesars Interactive Entertainment, Inc. Caesars Atlantic City, 2100 Pacific Avenue Atlantic.

• Harrah's Cherokee Sports Betting Schedule
• Harrah's Cherokee North Carolina Sports Betting

A Cherokee sportsbook has been added to the list of things to do for those visiting the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains. People may come for picturesque views and outdoor activities, but many tourists and locals stay for the gaming. Cherokee, NC is home to the first-ever casino in the state of North Carolina, a resort that offers all of the traditional casino games that players would expect when visiting the Vegas strip. Now, with the addition of a sportsbook, it makes the overall betting experience nearly identical, but without all of the hustle and bustle of a big city. The current gambling environment in Cherokee is thriving with the blackjack, craps, poker, and slot machines that patrons love, but sports wagering will turn this into an entirely new experience once it’s been around enough.

The state Legislatures signed NC SB 154 into law in July 2019. Under this law, both Tribal casinos in the state are now allowed to offer legal sports betting. Mobile sports wagers are not part of the new laws. Of course, sports enthusiasts in the state may continue to use offshore books like Bovada and BetOnline for all of your internet gambling needs. But now rather than having to rely strictly on online wagering through online offshore sportsbooks, locals will be able to visit a land-based sportsbook in Cherokee, NC. Now you can go to Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort whenever you wish to place bets on sporting events in person. But keep that internet sportsbook account for whenever you can’t make it out to the casino to make your wagers on the games.

Is Sports Betting Currently Legal In Cherokee, NC?

Sports wagering is not currently legal in Cherokee, but it is only a matter of time before this changes. For about 25 years, North Carolina and other states were not given the option to establish land-based (nor online) sportsbooks. This was because of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA), a federal law that forbid government entities from operating, licensing, or promoting sports betting schemes. The only exceptions were states that had already established some form of legal sports betting, which at the time was only Delaware, Nevada, Oregon, and Montana. DE permitted NFL parlay bets, while NV allowed full-scale sports wagering. The remaining states had legalized sports lotteries but later decided to stop their programs.

All of this changed on May 18, 2018, when the United States Supreme Court ruled that PASPA was unconstitutional. This came after a longstanding battle between the state of New Jersey and NCAA, NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL in Murphy vs. NCAA. The case centered around the leagues filing multiple lawsuits against the state for their attempts to legalize sports betting. While the sports associations argued that the state was in violation of PASPA, New Jersey made the point that the federal ban itself was unconstitutional. Ultimately, the court sided with the Garden State and found that the federal law was in violation of the anti-commandeering clause of the Tenth Amendment. Now, each state can choose which forms of sports betting to legalize or prohibit.

With no federal barriers, a Cherokee sportsbook was allowed to legally open their doors in 2019. The laws in the state may limit sports betting to land-based venues, but it is a step in the right direction. While mobile sports betting is not legal under the new law, there is talk of legalization in the future. For now, residents in North Carolina will need to stick to land-based sports betting or offshore internet sportsbooks.

What Is The Sports Betting Age In Cherokee, NC?

The sports betting age in Cherokee, North Carolina is the same as it is for all other types of Class III gaming- 21 years old. The current casino in Cherokee mandates that those on the gaming floor be at least 21 years old, and the same rule applies for sports wagering. Being that the state of North Carolina has determined the general gambling age, all other future sportsbooks in Cherokee, NC and elsewhere will have the same requirement for sports betting. As soon as you are of age, you will be able to bet on sports at any licensed Cherokee sportsbook.

Best Sportsbooks In Cherokee, NC

Right now, the list of the best sportsbooks in Cherokee, North Carolina is relatively short, there is exactly one. Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort in Cherokee has been a staple in the city for decades for casino games. In the future, the state may issue sports wagering licenses to outside operators, meaning that there may be standalone betting shops or wagering that can take place at various online sites. For now, though, Harrah’s will someday be the place to be when betting on sports in North Carolina such as the Carolina Panthers and betting on the NFL. It will be great for those who are not making the trip across the state to go to the game as not only will bettors watch the game in a great environment but also be able to bet on the NFL as well. As more details arise and additional locations are announced, we will update our list of the Cherokee’s best sportsbooks!

• Harrah's Cherokee Casino
• Address: 777 Casino Dr, Cherokee, NC 28719
• Phone Number: (828) 497-7777

Harrah's Cherokee Sports Betting Schedule

Harrah’s Cherokee Sportsbook may be the first sports betting establishment in North Carolina, just as it was the first casino. Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort is a Class III establishment, meaning that it has all of the traditional casino gaming that you’d expect – plus more! The casino boasts 150,000 square feet of gaming space, more than 1,000 hotel rooms, and plenty of exciting entertainment options.

If you want to play Vegas-style slots, Harrah’s Cherokee has exactly what you are looking for. There are more than 3,280 titles to choose from, with denominations from .01¢ to $500 for high rollers. Some of the most popular slot games include Monopoly, 88 Fortunes, Crystal, Wheel of Fortune, and Buffalo.

Those who prefer table games will find plenty of live-action at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino. There are more than 100+ traditional games, including blackjack, craps, roulette, Let It Ride, and 3 Card Poker. For those that want a smoke-free environment, visit their dedicated room with 20 different tables. You can also play digital table games like Mini-Baccarat also known as Baccarito.

SportsBettingNorthCarolina.com knows there is so much to do at Harrah’s Cherokee Resort that it’s never a bad idea to stay for a night or two. The hotel rooms are spacious and upscale, with many featuring mountain views. Visit The Pools at Harrah’s Cherokee to cool off inside or outside while having a few refreshments from the bar. Other things to do in the future at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino & Sportsbook include golf at Sequoyah National Golf Club or bowling in their “multi-tainment” center.

With the Senate bill signed regarding legalizing sports betting, North Carolina already has Harrah’s Cherokee Casino where sports betting can be done. Coming up very soon both Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Harrahs’s Cherokee Valley River casino and hotel will have sports betting and this is great for the residents here in Cherokee. Expected to launch in 2020, this will be the only place where residents will be able to place their sports bets locally. Many fans will be able to not only place their wagers on not only professional sports but also college sports as well. Also, can't forget about off-track horse racing as well. Both of these locations will have all betting options there and this is something that the state of North Carolina is very excited about. Numerous promotions will be up for those players that come in soon as it opens.

• North Carolina sports betting was made legal in the summer of 2019.
• The industry has not yet opened in the Tar Heel State even though the Cherokee Tribe has submitted all of the paperwork that is still awaiting approval.
• Once Governor Roy Cooper signs the Tribal Compacts, Caesars sportsbook is ready to open at both Harrahs’ locations in North Carolina.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – North Carolina legalized sports betting in July of 2019 but their industry has still not launched well over a year later.

Once they roll out to the public, sportsbooks will open at the two Cherokee owned casinos in the state, Harrah’s in Murphy and Harrah’s in Cherokee, NC.

LegalSportsBetting spoke to Chief Richard Sneed of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) to discuss what stage the legal sports wagering industry in the Tar Heel State is in at this point.

Talking With Chief Sneed

When it comes to Tribal gaming, it’s an entirely different ball game than that of commercial gaming.

Tribes need to go through more processes for their markets to open, one within their own government and then one with the state.

Considering that sports wagers are classified as Class III gaming, the EBCI expected that they would have already opened their sportsbooks because it was a mere addition to the compacts that they have in place already. But that has not been the case.

“The legislature passed the legislation to allow for sports betting on Tribal land and it was signed by the Governor. However, the second part of the process is under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) where we have to negotiate the compact to add sports betting which we thought would be a very short process because it’s just another form of Class III gaming but for whatever reason, it has turned into this big, long drawn out process that’s coming up on a year,” said Chief Sneed to LegalSportsBetting.

Compact negotiations with the Governor’s office began in September 2019, two months after the signing of Senate Bill 154 into law. This marks a year of the state being in limbo without a sports wagering market being offered to the people of North Carolina.

All compact paperwork to add sports betting to their current documents has been submitted to Governor Roy Cooper’s office for his signature. The ball is now in Cooper’s court as everything has been ironed out on the Tribal end of the process.

“That’s where we are at right now, we are just waiting on the Governor to sign it because when that happens, we’re ready to roll,” said Sneed.

Upon the signing by Cooper, legal sports betting in North Carolina can finally launch.

The sportsbook operator chosen by the EBCI for their two locations is Caesars Entertainment. They are prepared to open their sportsbook immediately after the compact is signed. Everything has been constructed and is ready to go once pen hits paper.

“My hope is that he (the Governor) will sign it by sometime next week but that’s entirely up to him, I don’t have any say on the matter. We had hoped to have been open already,” said Sneed.

With any luck, North Carolina will have legal sportsbooks at Harrah’s in time for the NFL season. Until then, Chief Sneed and sports bettors in the Tar Heel State continue to sit and wait for the green light by Governor Cooper.

News tags: Caesars Entertainment Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians EBCI Harrahs IGRA Indian Gaming Regulatory Act NFL North Carolina Richard Sneed Roy Cooper

Harrah's Cherokee North Carolina Sports Betting

Christina has been writing for as long as she can remember and does dedicated research on the newly regulated sports betting market. She comes from a family of sports lovers that engage in friendly bets from time to time. During the winter months, you can find Christina baking cookies and beating the entire staff at Mario Kart…the N64 version of course.