California Online Casino And Sports Betting

According to the information from 2017, there are currently 62 land-based casinos in California, operated in conformance with the state’s legal requirements. This number excludes the Cardrooms (almost 90 of them), which, although referred to as “casinos”, lack one significant element that would classify them as such – Cardrooms do not have any slot machines.

The casinos in California are operated by federally recognized Native American tribes, in accordance with IGRA (Indian Gaming Regulatory Act). Ranging from small venues with no more than a few slots to large casinos with hundreds of thousands of square meters and thousands of slot machines, they all contribute to adding billions in annual revenue which has a continual growth trend.

Considering the fact that some of tribe operated casinos, such as Pechanga Resort, have over 4,000 slot machines and almost 200,000 square feet of gaming space, this hardly comes as a surprise.

The second in line is Morongo Casino, with the tallest casino tower in the Inland Empire; Morongo occupies 44 acres of land and has more than 2,000 slot machines and table games. The numbers seem staggering – maybe even difficult to justify – but one would only have to look at the statistics to understand the investments made in the gambling industry. More than 80 million people made a visit to a casino in a single year and the numbers are bound to hit the roof once the remaining states resolve the legal status of sports betting, which California is on a brink of doing, as already mentioned above.

The location of the California brick and mortar casinos definitely helps with the numbers and the growing annual revenue; the venues have gradually spread throughout the entire state, after the California Proposition 1A in 2000, aka Gambling on Tribal Lands Amendment. There are of course certain restrictions which concern Craps and Roulette games (they do however exist, only not in their native forms – both Craps and Roulette are offered as card games), but other than that, the offer is quite substantial, making Californian casinos serious competitors to New Jersey and Nevada.

• Cache Creek Casino Resort – Cache Creek Casino Resort won the Daily Republic’s 2016 Reader’s Choice award for Best Casino.
• Thunder Valley Casino – Thunder Valley Casino Resort is located outside of Sacramento off Highway 65 in Lincoln.
• Red Hawk Casino – Located 30 miles east of Sacramento on Highway 50. Red Hawk Casino offers 2,100 slot machines and 75 table games.

• Barona Resort & Casino – Award-winning guest service and phenomenal hospitality. Barona offers over 2,400 slots and 120 table games.
• Pechanga Resort & Casino – Pechanga Resort Casino is wholly owned and operated by the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians.
• Harrah’s Resort Southern California – Come out and play at Harrah’s Southern California, the fun, friendly San Diego casino and AAA Four Diamond Award winning hotel.

The games are divided into three classes, each falling under a different set of state regulations. The Class I games are placed outside the state regulatory area since they include ceremonial games or certain social games with low-value prizes. As such, Class I games are regulated by the Tribal government.

Class II games fall under a more typical casino offer and, as such, require a state permit. Bingo, Lotto, Punch Boards, Pull Tabs, non-banked Card games are only some of the games placed under this category and the number of Class II variants that the tribal-operated casino can offer is unlimited. Unlike Class I games that are only regulated by the tribes, this category is handled by NIGC (National Indian Gaming Commission) as well.

Drawing a clear line between Class II and Class III games is becoming increasingly difficult due to the rapid technological advancement in the industry. There is no doubt that the future will continue to blur the lines between the two groups, however, at the moment, Class III covers all commercial games that cannot be classified under the first two categories: Blackjack, Baccarat, Slots…

Other forms of betting in a California online casino include Horse Racing, California State Lottery, Parimutuel Wagering, and Charitable Gaming operated by non-profit organizations. The latter often comes in the form of Bingo, although raffles and poker nights can also be organized.