Most states see July as the low point for legal sports betting, and the tax revenue they bring in, but with the Denver Nuggets winning the NBA championship in June, Colorado’s online sports betting sites reported bleak revenue. July was a welcome return to normal.
Colorado's Department of Revenue reported that the state's sportsbooks took in $281.1 million in bets in July, a 9.5% monthly decrease. From that handle operators paid out $256.1 million in winnings, leaving $24.9 million in gross revenue which was a hold of 8.8%.
While it’s unfair to measure July’s hold with June’s 2.9% (when the Nuggets won), it was higher than May’s 8.1% hold, which meant the state’s tax haul saw a sizable boost.
State coffers received $1.7 million from sportsbooks in July, a 302% monthly jump. And compared to July 2022, Colorado’s legal sports market saw strong growth. The Department of Revenue announced that the state’s handle increased by 8.7% and the tax bill was 62% higher.
Combat sports a boom for bettors
Colorado sportsbooks, as a whole, saw a profit in every sport except for 2, MMA and boxing. Bettors in the Centennial State won $1.2 million from their boxing bets, from just $1 million wagered. And for those who bet MMA online eeked out a small profit, winning $5.7 million from $5.6 million in wagers.
Baseball big in Colorado
But despite the Rockies poor season, bettors are coming to baseball as expected since baseball is the only major American sport still playing. Baseball accounted for 37.3% of all single sport wagers in the state. Basketball was 2nd with 12.3% of wagers followed by tennis at 12.1%. No other sport exceeded 10%.
In the retail market specifically, baseball was also the most bet sport followed by basketball and soccer.
