AUBURN, Wash. — Just in time for Super Bowl Sunday, another tribal casino in Washington is opening a sportsbook for betters.
Muckleshoot Casino in Auburn is holding a grand opening at 11 a.m. Friday to launch its betting room before one of the biggest sports weekends of the year, with a UFC match scheduled on Saturday and a Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Rams showdown on Sunday.
Muckleshoot follows other tribal casinos like Snoqualmie Casino and Puyallup's Emerald Queen Casino, which started to offer sports betting last year.
"This is going to be the new form of gaming for the state of Washington," Muckleshoot Casino Director of Operations Junior Maldonado said.
Muckleshoot Casino partnered with Caesars Entertainment Inc. to launch the sportsbook. The room features autographed sports memorabilia and can seat 92 people. A wall-sized LED screen can show several games at once and nine self-service betting kiosks will be available.
Maldonado said the casino also hired 15 additional staff members to prepare for the launch.
"Anybody in the local area in the state of Washington, come place your bets here at Muckleshoot," he said.
Sports betting is projected to be higher this year, according to the American Gaming Association, which says 18.2 million Americans will place sports wagers online, at a retail sportsbook or with a bookie, which is a 78 percent increase from 2021.
Muckleshoot's opening comes after a long time effort to legalize sports betting in Washington.
In 2020, Gov. Jay Inslee signed a law that allows sports betting at tribal casinos in the state. Last year, more than a dozen of the casinos got the green light to open sportsbooks.