- Sports betting launched in Colorado on May 1 as planned despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Given the difficulties the state faced launching mid-pandemic they’ve had stellar results.
- August sports betting handle was up 117% from the previous month.
We’ve been bullish on Colorado sports betting since not long after Governor Jared Polis signed the regulatory foundation into law during the Summer of 2019. If anything, the state’s sports betting industry continues to exceed even our lofty expectations in just about every way possible.
As sports bettors, we love the competitive environment that has already attracted companies from all over the world into the Rocky Mountains. With the launch of the Carousel Group’s SportsBetting.com earlier this week there are 15 different mobile betting options along with eight sportsbooks offering retail betting. As an industry observer, I’m in awe of the competence of the state’s sports betting regulators who got more done during a pandemic over Zoom video than most jurisdictions do in the best of times.
Most significantly, the Colorado sports betting revenue numbers continue to impress. August produced a 117% increase in total handle over the previous month. Keep in mind that July’s revenue saw a 55% increase over June’s numbers. Here’s the details from the Division of Gaming’s press release issued earlier today:
The return to play for professional sports has resulted in a big win for Colorado with another month of legalization showing promising figures for the growth of sports betting in the state. The Colorado Department of Revenue’s Division of Gaming released the monthly figures for August’s sports betting wagering and taxes and is reporting a 117% increase in total handle over the month prior, July 2020.
The total handle for both retail and online sports betting wagers in Colorado in August totaled $128,646,209.09. The total taxes collected from the Net Sports Betting Proceeds were $189,461.84. The top three sports by total wagers were basketball with $38,040,027.19 in wagers placed in with both retail and online operators, followed by baseball with $22,789,309.27 and ice hockey with $13,594,062.38.
I know that they’re trying to be professional and all but Colorado’s sports betting industry has already gone well beyond ‘promising’. Colorado is not only one of the most beautiful states in the country they’re well on their way to becoming the epicenter of US sports betting for both bettors and bookmakers.
