Colorado handle increases 26.3% to $537M in February; first two months of the year set all-time record

The Colorado Department of Revenue has released sports wagering figures for February 2024. For the second month of the year, the Centennial State reported a sports betting handle of $537 million, representing an increase of 26.3% year-over-year. Meanwhile, revenue increased by 14% to $25.8 million 

The $1.13 billion handle for the first two months of the calendar year is the most in Colorado history, beating out the $1.01 billion from January and February in 2022. 

Online betting generated $25.9 million in gross gaming revenue in February. However, a $144,982 loss from retail betting pushed the monthly total down slightly. The state’s 21 mobile operators and 10 retail books combined for a 4.8% hold.

Breaking down the market sport by sport, basketball proved the most popular with Colorado players in February. Some $229.8 million was bet on basketball during the month, accounting for some 42.8% of all bets placed.

Tennis wagers reached $47 million and ice hockey $33 million. However, despite the NFL hosting its end-of-season Super Bowl in February, American football bets only hit $29.4 million.

Additionally, college basketball drew $25.2 million in bets, while football drew $24.7 million and table tennis $12.6 million. It was also noted that parlay bets during the month topped $105.3 million.

Colorado players reaped rewards from their wagers, winning a total of $511.2 million from sports betting in February. The majority of these winnings, $507.6 million, came from online wagering, while retail sportsbooks contributed $3.6 million. 

As for tax, Colorado generated $1.3 million in sports betting taxes in February. Almost all of this came from online betting, with retail wagering resulting in just $2,509 in tax.