Colorado sports betting handle comes in at $360m for May
May’s handle was 8.2 per cent lower than April’s figure of $392.3m.
US.- Colorado’s sports betting handle hit $360m in May, according to information from the state Division of Gaming. The amount spent was down 8.2 per cent compared to April, when Coloradans wagered $392.3m.
Bets placed via online operators amounted to a handle of $356.8m, while retail operators took $3.4m in wagers. Professional basketball brought in the most wagers with $101.9m, followed by baseball ($90.9m) and ice hockey ($35.7m). Tennis was fourth at $20.3m and soccer completed the top five at $12.1m.
Gross gaming revenue from sports betting in Colorado was approximately $27.1m for May, an increase of 20.1 per cent compared to the previous month. The state received nearly $1.7m in taxes.
With the $7.3bn wagered since operators began accepting bets, Colorado is the seventh state to surpass $7bn in wagers, following New Jersey, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, and New York.
Colorado regulators criticised in audit
Colorado’s Office of the State Auditor has made a number of criticisms of the state’s two gambling regulators in an audit of their work. It said the Division of Gaming and the Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission hand out far too many temporary licenses and could be losing tax revenue by not requiring more documentation.
The 56-page report covers the period between May 1, 2020, and April 30, 2021, when Colorado customers bet almost $2.3bn. Colorado legalised sports wagering via referendum in November 2019, while mobile sportsbooks launched in May 2020.
