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Located just west of Edmonton on Enoch Reserve land, the River Cree Resort and Casino is the heaviest hitter in the province when it comes to bricks-and-mortar gaming.
What was already the largest casino in Edmonton has recently been expanded. The Embers, a smoke-friendly gaming area, has just doubled in size. A new tower is being added to the hotel complex; this will open another 240 rooms by mid-summer. Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen will open a location on the resort.
A new sportsbook will be launched late this year or early in 2027.
Next door, a new indoor golf centre is under construction, which will feature 40 driving bays. And, the Enoch Nation will soon be breaking ground on a new Indigenous thermal spa.
But while River Cree continues to expand its physical gaming and entertainment footprint, the resort is also preparing for the launch of Alberta online casinos and sportsbooks. The casino plans to launch its own iGaming platform later in 2026, positioning the River Cree brand to compete both online and in-person as the province opens the market to private operators.
River Cree Approved for Alberta’s Regulated iGaming Market
And, River Cree is one of 31 operators that have received conditional approval by Alberta, Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis to operate an iGaming platform when the market opens on July 13.
But, even though River Cree has the right to launch its app on July 13, its platform won’t debut until later in the year.
“We’ll be launching more towards the later part of this year,” said Vik Mahajan, River Cree’s CEO and general manager. “There might be some operators launching July 13. These are some of the iGaming businesses that are existing in the grey market and are going to go legitimate. But July 13 is a little too early for us.”
Mahajan said the idea is to get it right rather than rush an iGaming app to market.
“It will have all of your iGaming options: Different slot games, beautiful themes, it will be a great site. We’ll have some great marketing and great bonuses for customers. It will also have table games and, of course, sports.
“I think we’ll have all the sports options out there.”
First Nations to receive revenue share from iGaming
The province’s iGaming regulations require that 2 per cent of all revenue be saved for First Nations. So, Indigenous bands will be receiving passive income from iGaming. But, for River Cree, this is an opportunity to add to the largest casino brand in Alberta.
“We are the market leader in the province,” said Mahajan. “We lead not just from a size perspective, but a market-share perspective. We are an expert as a nation in gaming. So, as iGaming becomes available, it would be natural for us to get into it.”
River Cree Confident Competing with Major Online Operators
Mahajan said that even though giants like BetMGM and Bet365 are going to be in the marketplace, River Cree has the advantage of being able to leverage its brick-and-mortar properties with its iGaming sites. It can use the casino for cross-promotion and marketing.
“We are not afraid of the competition,” said Mahajan. “River Cree is a brand in this province. It is well known north, south, west, and east — everywhere in the province. So, we are happy to compete with Bet365 and all the others. We have an advantage that Bet365 doesn’t have: a bricks-and-mortar casino. We are able to give our customers the best of both worlds.”
