- Colorado sports betting has received a record-breaking amount of betting handle with 98% of it being placed online in September.
- Colorado’s revenue on sport betting was down in the month due to promotional free bets cutting into the state revenue
- Sports betting experts believe the amount of sports betting will continue to grow in Colorado.
DENVER - Colorado has experienced a record-breaking month of money wagered on sports in September. This trend has continued to follow during the early stages of legalized sports betting in the Centennial State.
The state saw $207.7 million in bets during the month which was not only an all-time record state record but also a 61% increase from the previous month of August that saw $128.6 million wagered.
This spike in September’s sports betting handle has placed Colorado in the top five states with the largest amount of money wagered and according to reports it was mostly powered by USA online gambling platforms.
From the $207.7 million wagered, $203.9 (98%) was spent on various mobile and online sportsbooks around the state proving that a majority of bettors in Colorado are preferring to bet online.
The industry also truly benefited from the increase in major sports to bet on in September with NBA and NHL playoff games along with MLB and NFL regular-season games to pick from.
Though Colorado's online gambling and sports betting market is receiving this influx of bets made, the state is making a surprisingly low amount of revenue from the market.
During this record-breaking month of September, the state only brought in $69,771.64 in revenue and it could be attributed to the promotional free bets that sportsbook apps have continually offered.
“When the legislation was crafted, the operators, they certainly pay the tax on the net betting proceeds, but the net betting proceeds come from the money that’s bet, the money that’s returned to players, and then the operators get to take off their promotional money, and their excise tax that they pay to the federal government before we get to the net proceeds,” said Dan Hartman, head of Colorado’s division of Gaming.
Players have seen big profits by simply signing up and using the free bet promotions to cause the sportsbook less revenue on the transaction but this should lessen as sports betting continues in the state.
The COVID-19 concerns more than likely played a part in the high volume of online betting and sports betting experts believe the interest in wagering will continue especially when more fans are allowed to attend sporting events.