Gambling in North Carolina
North Carolina is not one of those states looking to make up ground on old gambling laws. You'll soon discover that the Tar Heel State has some of the strictest gambling rules in the country, laws that have stayed mostly unchanged over the years despite major movements in the other way by its neighboring states. All is not lost, though.
Changing Attitudes Towards Gambling in North Carolina
Signs of change are visible, but there is still a lot of kickback from the Senate. It looks possible that North Carolina may look to authorize online sports betting in 2023 or later in 2024 after being turned down in 2022. It is, however, uncertain if legislators will legalize online North Carolina casino sites in the near future.
The two types of gambling that are authorized in North Carolina are horse racing and the lottery. Bingo and raffles can be held by charitable organizations, but these are infrequent, and for such little amounts of money, they are considered insignificant.
In a more positive light, the state's higher education system has been saved in part by the lottery, and tribal gambling has resulted in the creation of thousands of new employment opportunities. Overall, the state is still more conservative than the rest of the South, but it looks to be on the upswing.
Top Casinos in North Carolina
The Smoky Mountains are home to two North Carolina Casinos. The resorts are located on the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians-owned property. Aside from slot machines, it was video poker and electronic table games that the first Harrah's Cherokee casino had to offer. In August of 2012, Harrah's Cherokee grew from a small casino into a full-fledged resort with hundreds of gaming tables added. Near Murphy, the Cherokee people had placed some land in trust, and in September 2015, the site became home to another casino in North Carolina. It’s a small selection, but the current collection of games across the casinos provides more than enough entertainment.
Online Gambling in North Carolina
Let’s make things clear for those in Tar Heel State, is online gambling legal in North Carolina? In short, no. Legal online betting and gaming are not available in NC. There are no authorized online poker, online casino, or legal sports betting North Carolina sites that welcome its residents.
As it stands, real money online casino North Carolina sites are not part of the legal activities available in the state.
In 2022, the Senate of North Carolina decided against the sports betting bill: SB 688. Bill SB 38 was passed on a 51-50 vote, but it also required the passing of the underlying SB 668 bill, which would have approved 10-12 online betting sites. There is a discussion to reword SB 38 and try to push that through, with various concessions being made, one being the restriction of credit card use.
As worldwide access to online gaming continues to expand, this subject is not going away any time soon. Legislators in North Carolina must decide whether to reinforce their opposition to gambling in their state or surrender and accept the money generated by future online casino North Carolina sites. But as it currently stands, real money online casino North Carolina sites are not part of the legal activities available in the state.
Online Poker
The only legal method to play poker in North Carolina is at one of the tribal casinos - Harrah’s Cherokee Casino. Although North Carolina gambling looks to be entering its modern era, online gaming remains a very controversial topic. As such, neither offline nor internet poker establishments outside of the tribal casinos are legal in this state.
Online Betting
Sports betting North Carolina is not a pastime locals can enjoy right now, although there are ongoing discussions around sports betting becoming legal soon. So, it’s a case of watching this space for now. But the future looks vaguely promising for sports bettors across the state.
However, one note on daily fantasy sites. Currently, these sites do welcome North Carolina players. These companies maintain that these competitions are games of skill and not gambling, and in doing so, they aim to sidestep the current laws. As it stands, the North Carolina authorities have not proclaimed differently, unlike several other states. Popular daily fantasy sports sites that welcome North Carolina residents include FanDuel and DraftKings.
Top Gambling Cities in North Carolina
The only two casinos in North Carolina are owned and managed exclusively by the Cherokee Tribe. There are several other gaming establishments that host charitable casino nights and lotteries, but we will focus on the main options when searching for a casino city in North Carolina.
Cherokee
The original Harrah's casino and hotel complex at Cherokee is vast. Positioned between Asheville and Maggie Valley, this casino is based in a key gambling city in North Carolina. A total of 1,100 guest rooms and 150,000 square feet of gaming area can be found here. Out of the two casinos in North Carolina with slot machines, the original Cherokee Casino is still the best. You also get video poker, live poker, electronic table games, craps, roulette, and baccarat gaming options.
Murphy
2015 saw the opening of the second Harrah's Cherokee Valley River casino resort within Murphy. This facility is just as good as the other one in Cherokee as far as the selection of games goes. All that's different is this one is somewhat smaller in size. The majority of the Atlanta metropolitan area is just an hour away from Harrah's Valley River Casino venue, making it North Carolina's most accessible casino and one that should only grow in stature over the coming years.
Tribal Gaming
The state of North Carolina has an official contract with the federally recognized Cherokee Indians (Eastern Band), as well as the Catawba Tribe.
Two Class III tribal casinos in the state are run by the Eastern Band of Cherokee. The Cherokee Indians are the legal owners of the two casinos in their territory, but Harrah's, a subsidiary of Caesars Entertainment, handles the day-to-day business.
The Catawba Indian Nation was constructing its one and only Class III tribal casino at the time of writing. However, the Catawba Indian Tribe, whose ancestral home resides in neighboring South Carolina, plans to open a new Class III tribal casino resort at King's Mountain.