Colorado has become another beneficiary of an extended NFL season after games across five weekends in the month of January pushed the state’s sports handle into the record zone of $574m.
And it wasn’t just the NFL. Though the boost from the extra game was undeniable, it was the NBA that brought in the highest volume of bets.
Year-on-year growth has been something dramatic in the Centennial State: according to data released by the Colorado Division of Gaming, the $573.7m in betting handle was up 75.5% from the $326.9m seen in January 2021.
This puts Colorado within the top echelons of sports betting states: only New York, New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and – likely, once numbers are released – Illinois performed better.
Since launching in May 2020, mobile betting in Colorado has brought in a cumulative $4.4bn.
In terms of gross gaming revenue in January, sportsbooks generated $34.6m, up 49.7% from January 2021’s $22.7m and also 40.1% higher than the $24.6m seen the in December 2021.
Sportsbooks spent $21.5m on promotions which meant that taxable revenue came to $11.7m. The Colorado state government was able to collect $1.5m in taxes, just shy of a record.
Professional basketball was the big winner in terms of draw: betting on NBA games came to $163.6m in bets, up from the $125.5m seen in December. After this was the NFL, which rose to $144.1m from the $136.5m seen the month before.
Then, college basketball ($63.1m), followed by ice hockey (24.1m), tennis ($20.0m), college football ($16.0m) and soccer ($14.7m).
