The latest monthly revenue report from the Colorado Department of Revenue reveals that the state’s sportsbooks accepted over $573.7 million in wagers during the month of January.
The latest figures represent an increase of 24.3% on December’s handle of $461.4 million and marks a new all-time record for the most wagered during a single month since sports betting launched in Colorado. This was over $82 million more than the previous record of $491.4 million set in October 2021 and the fifth month in a row that sportsbooks took in over $400 million in wagers.
Basketball took over from pro football as the most popular sport at Colorado sportsbooks as local gamblers placed over $163.5 million in wagers on the NBA representing 28.5% of all wagering activity in January. Meanwhile NCAA basketball betting amounted to $63.1 million for the month, a considerable jump on the previous month as the NCAA gears up for the March Madness tournament.
Wagers on the NFL totaled $144 million in the run up to February’s Super Bowl while college football attracted $15.9 million in wagers throughout the month.
Retail sports betting operators accepted $6.63 million in wagers for the month, a slight increase on the previous month. Online sports bets accounted for 98.8% of all betting activity as mobile sports betting apps accepted over $567.1 million in wagers during the month.
Winnings for players in the month of January totaled just over $539 million with $532.9 million of this paid through mobile sports betting apps. Retail winnings amounted to $6.17 million.
Gross gaming revenue (GGR) rose by 40% to $34.6 million. This was just under November’s all-time record of $36.8 million. As a result, state taxes for January amounted to $1.4 million from a win percentage of 6.04%, almost double the taxes collected in the previous month.
Based in London, Natasha is a former sports journalist with experience working for some of the biggest athletes & brands in the world of sports and iGaming.