Colorado sports betting handle sees 22% monthly drop to $392M in April, still significant growth from 2021

The Colorado Division of Gaming reported Friday the monthly sports betting figures corresponding to April 2022, with a total handle of $392.3 million, a 22.4% decrease from March, when the state perceived a total of $505.6 million. However, in a year-over-year comparison, April showed a 60.5% increase in handle. Colorado is now less than $88 million away from reaching the $2 billion handle mark for 2022, a total that took the state eight months to reach in 2021.

Gross revenue increased 46.9% in the first four months of the year compared to 2021, but adjusted revenue increased only 6.3% in the same period. Promotional spend has totaled $69.9 million thus far, an 81.9% boost compared to the $38.4 million operators furnished from January to April of last year.

In April, Professional Basketball placed itself in the top spot for the month with $146.4 million in total wagers, followed by baseball with $69.8 million in wagers. Ice Hockey came in third with $26.0 million. The fourth spot went to Tennis with $22.1 million, and soccer rounded out the top five sports with $15.5 million.

According to PlayColorado, the step back in handle for Colorado’s market was expected, as there were no football or major sports betting holidays.

"Without football or the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament, a slowdown is always inevitable in April, said Ken Pomponio, analyst for PlayColorado. "More importantly, the state’s industry continues to post strong year-over-year gains despite concerns in the greater economy. That said, the constant growth that the industry has enjoyed over the last two years is facing a threat for the first time since the earliest days of Colorado’s market.”

In the U.S., Colorado’s handle so far ranks sixth nationally among the states who have released their April totals.

Taxes collected by the state in April 2022 from sports betting wagers totaled $1,231,742 representing a slight increase over the prior month. Fiscal year taxes to date for April 2022 are $10.5 million, which is a 67% rise from the FYTD Taxes for the same period last year.