North Carolina has joined the growing list of states to legalize sports betting and Harrah’s Cherokee Casinos will soon accommodate guests with new sportsbooks.
Last week, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 154 into law, which allows the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians – which owns Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort and Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino & Hotel – to open sportsbooks on their properties.
Development will begin immediately at both locations for what will be named The Book. Completion is expected by late fall.
During construction, the resort in Cherokee will open a temporary location in what is currently Sound Bytes at its UltraStar Multi-tainment Center. The Book location at Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River will be located near the promotions stage.
Patrons can wager on collegiate and professional sports, as well as off-track horse racing.
In the past year, sports gambling has been legalized in New Jersey, Delaware, Mississippi, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, among other states.
The Harrah's Valley River property offers the closest gambling to Georgia. Opened in 2015, the 50,000-square-foot casino and 300-room hotel is located exactly 15.3 miles over the state line is about a two-hour drive from metro Atlanta.
The larger resort-styled Harrah's Cherokee, tucked in the North Carolina Smoky Mountains about three hours from metro Atlanta, continues to expand after almost 22 years in the market. Its World Series of Poker room, which opened in 2012, is renowned in the industry and the giant Multi-tainment Center, which arrived in 2017, added bowling and a family-friendly arcade to the property. Last year, the casino broke ground on a conference center and another hotel tower that will add 725 rooms to its current tally of 1,100.
Both properties are operated by Caesars Entertainment.
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