Colorado gamblers bet $6.4 billion on sports during the last year, setting a record for the amount of money wagered since sports betting was legalized in the state in 2020.
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That amount showed a 2.3% increase over the total bet during the previous fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30, according to data from the Colorado Department of Revenue’s Division of Gaming.
Colorado’s gamble on sports betting
Basketball was the most popular sport for Colorado gamblers, receiving $1.3 billion in bets. That category includes NBA games as well as professional basketball played overseas. NCAA basketball was the eighth most popular sport, receiving $173.6 million in wagers.
The NFL, with $853.7 million wagered, and baseball, with $548.1 million wagered, ranked second and third in popularity.
Coloradans’ fondness for betting on table tennis continued with that sport receiving the fourth-highest amount gambled — $346.4 million.
Addiction experts often cite the amount gambled on table tennis as an indicator of problem gambling because the sport is not popular in the United States, and Americans do not understand it. But it takes place throughout the year and is usually played overseas in the middle of the night in Colorado when no American sports are happening.
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The tax revenue generated by sports betting also hit a milestone, raising more than $47 million for water projects. That was a 28% increase in taxes raised over the previous fiscal year.
The tax money is used for grants to restore and preserve the state’s rivers and streams, assisting ranchers, anglers and others who depend on the state’s limited water resources for business and recreation.
“Achieving over $47 million in tax revenue this fiscal year is a historic milestone for Colorado’s sports betting industry,” the gaming division’s director Christopher Schroder said in a news release. “This record-breaking performance is not just an indicator of a thriving and engaged market, but a vital engine for our state’s future.”
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