Catawba Indian Nation Eyes Two More Casinos After $1.25B Two Kings Resort Launch

Benjamin Reyes

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July 3, 2026

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The Catawba Indian Nation opened the doors to its Two Kings Casino Resort in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, on July 1, 2025, marking the first phase of a $1.25 billion development that will reshape the state’s gambling market. Tribal Chief Brian Harris has already confirmed that the Catawbas have identified two more casino locations and entered preliminary negotiations, signaling an aggressive multi-property expansion strategy. With the Lumbee Tribe recently voting against a competing casino proposal in Robeson County, the Catawbas now hold a widening monopoly over commercial-scale tribal gaming in North Carolina.

By Benjamin Reyes | July 3, 2025

Two Kings Casino Resort Opens July 1, 2025 in Kings Mountain, NC

The Introductory Phase: What Opened on Day One

The July 1, 2025 opening of Two Kings Casino Resort represents what the Catawba Indian Nation officially calls the “introductory casino” phase of the project. This initial footprint gives players access to a functioning casino floor while the larger resort infrastructure continues construction around it. The Kings Mountain, North Carolina site sits roughly 30 miles west of Charlotte, positioning it to draw from one of the fastest-growing metro areas in the American Southeast.

The Catawba Indian Nation secured federal recognition in 1993, but the path to a full-scale casino was anything but direct. The tribe spent years in legal and regulatory battles over gaming rights before finally gaining the federal approvals needed to break ground. A proposed deal with developer Wallace Cheves and his company Sky Boat Gaming was rejected by federal regulators, forcing the Catawbas to find a new partner before construction could begin. [1]

The rejection of the Cheves deal was a pivotal moment. Federal regulators at the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) scrutinized the financial structure of that arrangement, and the Catawbas ultimately pivoted to Delaware North, a global gaming and hospitality operator headquartered in Buffalo, New York. That decision unlocked over $1 billion in financing from KeyBanc Capital Markets and set the project on its current trajectory.

Delaware North and KeyBanc: The Partnership Behind the Project

Delaware North is one of the largest privately held gaming and hospitality companies in the world, reporting approximately $3.7 billion in annual revenue across its portfolio of sports venues, casinos, airports, and national park concessions. The company brings operational expertise that the Catawbas needed to satisfy both federal regulators and institutional lenders. KeyBanc Capital Markets, the investment banking arm of KeyCorp, structured the debt financing package that exceeded $1 billion to fund the Two Kings Casino Resort development. [1]

The joint venture structure between the Catawba Indian Nation and Delaware North gives the tribe sovereign ownership of the gaming operation while Delaware North provides management infrastructure. This model mirrors arrangements used by other tribal nations across the United States, where outside operators provide capital and expertise in exchange for management fees rather than equity stakes in the gaming license itself. The NIGC requires that tribes retain primary benefit from any gaming operation conducted on tribal lands, and the Catawba-Delaware North structure was designed to meet that standard.

KeyBanc’s willingness to commit more than $1 billion to a tribal gaming project reflects the broader confidence institutional lenders now place in the sector. Tribal gaming generated approximately $41.9 billion in gross gaming revenue across the United States in fiscal year 2022, according to the National Indian Gaming Commission, making it one of the most stable segments of the American gaming industry. [1]

The Full $1.25 Billion Two Kings Resort: What Arrives in 2026

A 24-Story Hotel, 11 Restaurants, and an Expanded Casino Floor

The completed Two Kings Casino Resort, expected to open in full during 2026, will be a destination-scale property by any measure. The development plan includes a 24-story hotel tower, 11 restaurants and bars, and a significantly expanded casino floor beyond what opened on July 1, 2025. At $1.25 billion in total project cost, Two Kings Casino Resort ranks among the largest tribal gaming investments in the southeastern United States. [1]

For context, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians operates Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort in Cherokee, North Carolina, which has undergone multiple expansions and represents the dominant tribal gaming property in the state. Two Kings Casino Resort, once complete, will offer a direct competitive alternative for Charlotte-area gamblers who currently make the roughly 2.5-hour drive to Cherokee. The Kings Mountain location cuts that travel time dramatically for millions of residents in the greater Charlotte metropolitan area, which the U.S. Census Bureau estimated at approximately 2.7 million people as of 2023.

The 24-story hotel tower alone signals that the Catawbas are building for overnight destination visitors, not just day-trip gamblers. Properties that combine hotel rooms with casino floors consistently generate higher revenue per visitor than standalone gaming halls, and the 11-restaurant footprint suggests the tribe is targeting the full-service resort segment rather than competing on gaming volume alone. Construction employment during the build-out phase has supported thousands of jobs in Cleveland County, North Carolina, where Kings Mountain is located.

Economic Impact for Kings Mountain and Cleveland County

Tribal casino developments of this scale typically generate significant local economic activity beyond the gaming floor itself. A $1.25 billion construction project in a county the size of Cleveland County, North Carolina, which had a population of approximately 98,000 as of the 2020 Census, represents a transformative capital injection. Construction phases alone for projects of comparable size have historically supported between 3,000 and 5,000 direct and indirect jobs, based on standard economic multiplier models used by the American Gaming Association.

Once operational, a resort of Two Kings Casino Resort’s projected scale would be expected to employ between 2,000 and 4,000 permanent workers across gaming, hospitality, food service, and administration. The Catawba Indian Nation has not released official permanent employment projections, but comparable tribal resort openings in the Southeast provide a reasonable benchmark. The tribe also benefits from gaming revenue that funds tribal government services, healthcare, education, and infrastructure for Catawba Nation members.

North Carolina Tribal Gaming in 2025: A Shifting Competitive Landscape

North Carolina’s tribal gaming market is undergoing its most significant structural shift in decades. The table below compares the two primary tribal gaming operators in the state as of mid-2025.

The Lumbee Tribe’s decision to vote against a casino proposal in Robeson County in 2025 removed the most credible near-term competitor to Catawba gaming expansion in the eastern part of North Carolina. The Lumbee Tribe is the largest tribe east of the Mississippi River by population, with approximately 55,000 enrolled members, and a Robeson County casino would have served a distinct geographic market from Kings Mountain. With that proposal shelved, the Catawbas face no immediate tribal gaming competition in the central or eastern regions of the state. [1]

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, operating through their Harrah’s Cherokee partnership with Caesars Entertainment, remains the dominant force in western North Carolina tribal gaming. Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort has operated since 1997 and has expanded multiple times, adding a hotel tower, event center, and additional gaming space over the decades. The Eastern Band’s operation is geographically distinct from Kings Mountain, serving the Asheville and western mountain corridor rather than the Charlotte metro. The two tribes are not in direct competition for the same primary customer base, which may explain why the Catawba expansion has not triggered significant public opposition from the Eastern Band.

North Carolina does not currently permit commercial (non-tribal) casinos, meaning tribal gaming operations hold a structural monopoly on land-based casino gambling in the state. This regulatory environment makes the Catawba Indian Nation’s expansion strategy particularly valuable: each new casino location the tribe secures represents a market with no licensed commercial competition. [1]

Two New Casino Sites: What Chief Brian Harris Revealed

Preliminary Negotiations and the Tribe’s Multi-Property Vision

Catawba Chief Brian Harris confirmed publicly that the tribe has identified two additional locations for casinos in North Carolina and entered preliminary negotiations for both sites. Harris did not disclose the specific locations, which is standard practice during early-stage land acquisition and regulatory discussions. Tribal gaming expansions require approval from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the NIGC before construction can begin, a process that typically takes several years from initial site identification to groundbreaking. [1]

The Catawba Indian Nation’s ability to pursue multiple simultaneous casino projects depends on several factors: the tribe’s financial position following the Two Kings Casino Resort financing, the willingness of federal regulators to approve additional gaming sites, and the availability of suitable land that can be taken into federal trust for gaming purposes. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 (IGRA) governs which lands tribes can use for gaming, and off-reservation gaming requires a specific federal determination that the new site benefits the tribe and does not harm surrounding communities.

The timing of Chief Harris’s announcement is strategically significant. By revealing the two-site expansion plan at the moment of Two Kings Casino Resort’s Phase 1 opening, the Catawba Indian Nation signals to investors, regulators, and competitors that the tribe views Kings Mountain as a foundation rather than a destination. The announcement also reinforces the tribe’s negotiating position with potential development partners and lenders for future projects, demonstrating that the Catawba Indian Nation has both the appetite and the institutional relationships to execute large-scale gaming developments.

What the Lumbee Vote Means for Catawba Expansion Geography

The Lumbee Tribe’s 2025 vote against the Robeson County casino proposal effectively cleared the path for the Catawba Indian Nation to pursue eastern North Carolina locations without facing a competing tribal application in that region. Robeson County sits in the southeastern corner of the state, roughly 100 miles south of Raleigh, and would have served a market that no existing tribal casino currently reaches. If the Catawbas identify one of their two new sites in that geographic corridor, they would face no tribal competition and would benefit from the same commercial casino prohibition that protects their Kings Mountain operation.

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Key Takeaways

• The Catawba Indian Nation opened the Phase 1 introductory casino at Two Kings Casino Resort in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, on July 1, 2025.
• The full Two Kings Casino Resort is a $1.25 billion project expected to complete in 2026, featuring a 24-story hotel and 11 restaurants and bars.
• Catawba Chief Brian Harris confirmed the tribe has identified two additional casino locations in North Carolina and entered preliminary negotiations for both sites.
• The project is a joint venture with Delaware North, a global gaming operator with approximately $3.7 billion in annual revenue, financed by over $1 billion from KeyBanc Capital Markets.
• A previous development deal with Wallace Cheves and Sky Boat Gaming was rejected by federal regulators, leading to the current Delaware North partnership.
• The Lumbee Tribe voted against a casino proposal in Robeson County in 2025, removing the Catawbas’ most credible near-term tribal competitor in central and eastern North Carolina.
• North Carolina prohibits commercial casinos, giving tribal operators a structural monopoly on land-based casino gambling in the state.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

The Catawba Indian Nation’s July 1, 2025 opening of Two Kings Casino Resort is not a finish line. It is the opening move in what Chief Brian Harris has made clear is a multi-property, long-term strategy to dominate tribal gaming across North Carolina. With a $1.25 billion resort set to complete in 2026, two additional casino sites already in negotiation, and the Lumbee Tribe’s competing proposal now off the table, the Catawbas are positioned to become the most significant tribal gaming operator in the southeastern United States outside of the established Cherokee corridor. [1]

The Delaware North partnership and KeyBanc financing give the tribe institutional credibility that will matter when federal regulators evaluate future gaming site applications. The NIGC and Bureau of Indian Affairs approval process is lengthy and demanding, but the Catawbas have now demonstrated they can execute a billion-dollar project to completion, which strengthens every future application they file. North Carolina’s prohibition on commercial casinos means the tribe’s competitive moat is protected by state law, not just geography.

For anyone tracking the evolution of American gambling, the Catawba Indian Nation’s expansion is a case study in how sovereign tribal nations can leverage federal gaming law, institutional capital, and strategic patience to build lasting market positions. The Two Kings Casino Resort is just the beginning, and the two sites Chief Harris has identified may not be the last.

Sources

1. Casino.org – Catawba Indian Nation Eyes Two More Casinos After Two Kings Resort opening and expansion plans, July 2025.