Ho-Chunk Opens $705M Beloit Casino Near Hard Rock Rockford

The Ho-Chunk Nation opens its new Beloit, Wisconsin casino to the public on Friday, October 23, 2026, at 2 p.m. The Ho-Chunk Gaming Beloit website confirms the date for what the nation describes as its largest casino, and the site sits just off Interstate 90 near the Illinois border. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel puts the cost of the resort at $705 million.

The casino's own FAQ lists 1,500 slot machines and 44 table games. Local reporting on the opening phase has been more cautious, citing at least 1,300 slots and around 40 table games. The difference may reflect what is installed at launch against the full buildout, and the nation has not said which figure applies on day one.

Amenities listed by the casino include three restaurants, a coffee bar, a 90-seat bar and a parking ramp. The hotel is a second phase. It is planned as an 18-floor, 312-room tower with a rooftop lounge, a 2,000-seat conference space and a pool, due to open in fall 2027. The nation expects about 1,500 employees once the complex is complete.

A Project Two Decades In The Making

Beloit voters approved a casino in 1999, and the Ho-Chunk Nation's application began in 2012, with hopes of opening in 2021. Land was transferred to the nation in early 2021, but the long approvals process meant the market changed before the doors opened.

Illinois approved a casino in Rockford in 2019. Hard Rock Casino Rockford opened at a temporary site in late 2021 and moved into a permanent 175,000-square-foot building in 2024. It sits about 17 miles south of Beloit, and it is owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida.

How Rockford Is Responding

Hard Rock Rockford does not have a hotel today. Local reporting in May said the property expected up to a 20% hit to its revenue once Beloit opens, and that competition from the Ho-Chunk project helped push it to plan a hotel and convention centre now. 

A Rockford City Council committee backed a plan for the city to use its bonding authority to help finance a 200 to 225-room hotel and conference centre.

Beloit's opening also changes the map for the Illinois side of the border. The Ho-Chunk site is about a one-hour drive from Milwaukee and roughly 90 minutes from Chicago, which puts it within reach of players in northern Illinois who currently go to Rockford.

Wisconsin's Wider Gaming Picture

Wisconsin has no commercial casinos. Gaming in the state is run by tribes under compacts with the state, which is why the new venue is a tribal opening rather than a commercial licence award. The tribes also have the exclusive right to offer a sportsbook.

The Ho-Chunk Nation operates six other locations across the state, in Black River Falls, Madison, Nekoosa, Tomah, Wisconsin Dells and Wittenberg. 

For visitors, the casino's listed hours run from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. Sunday to Thursday and until 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. Players comparing the wider market can see our guide to online casinos in the US.