Colorado sports betting cleared another milestone in October as near-record monthly hold pushed sportsbooks past $1 billion in lifetime revenue.
The latest state report shows Colorado sportsbooks cleared $46.9 million in October, trailing only September 2022 when operators posted $51.3 million in revenue. Revenue was up 28.5% from last October.
Colorado is the 10th state to eclipse $1 billion in total sports betting revenue.
Handle boost for CO sports betting
Centennial State bettors staked 5% more in October this year compared to the same month the year before.
The $554.9 million sent through CO sportsbooks in October was the second-highest total for the market, behind $573.7 million from January 2022.
Football, parlays drive handle increase
In October, NFL betting topped the list of most popular bet types, outpacing parlays by tens of millions of dollars.
Football bettors staked $185.2 million on the NFL, up from $171.6 million in October last year. Sportsbooks kept $14.7 million from NFL betting.
Bettors dropped $117.1 million on parlays, up from $92 million in October 2022. Colorado sportsbooks made $17.7 million off the combo bets during the month.
College football betting returns to normal levels
College football betting in October was more in line with market norms at $51.8 million. October’s total was up $1.4 million over October 2022 but down from September’s all-time high of $69.5 million.
September’s figure was likely driven by the popularity and early season success of University of Colorado head coach Deion Sanders.
Basketball returns to Colorado sports betting menu
Basketball betting, a top Colorado sports betting market, returned in October with $63.4 million in handle.
Handle on the hardwood outpaced the NFL by more than $1 billion through the first three years of legal betting in the state.
CO sports betting tax talk
State tax collections approached $3.4 million in October. That is the most tax revenue for a single month since CO sports betting launched in May 2020.
It also marked back-to-back months of record sports betting tax revenue after Colorado collected $3.1 million in September.