Colorado March Handle Hits $593 Million
More Than Half the Amount Wagered Came From Pro Basketball
Colorado rebounded nicely from the typical February drop, as the state saw a significant uptick in sports betting. The Colorado March handle hits a little more than $593 million was good news for the state.
Not only was it a solid increase from the $536 million bet in February, it was well above the $494 million bet in March 2023.
More than $589 million in wagers were placed through online betting. Only $3.7 million came from retail sportsbooks in the state.
The total gross gaming revenue was just over $45 million. Net sports betting proceeds after free wagers and promotions was more than $31 million. The state received $2.85 million from sportsbooks for the month.
Colorado gives a detailed breakdown of handle by sport. Pro basketball drew an impressive 50.4% of the wagers for March. Having the Denver Nuggets certainly helps that, so maybe it wasn’t a huge shock to see the Colorado March handle hits $593 million.
NBA betting has exploded in the past year. In March 2023, there was $193 million bet on professional basketball. Nearly $299 million was bet on the NBA in March of this year.
There was an increase in the number of parlay/combination bets made this year compared to last. In 2023, parlays accounted for 18.3% of the wagers. This year it was 21.1%.
Big Drop in College Basketball
March Madness and college basketball accounted for 6.1% of the money wagered in March, which is about $36 million.
That’s a pretty steep drop from March 2023, when NCAA basketball accounted for 19.1% of the wagers and saw bets in excess of $94 million.
A drop-off that big in college basketball point spread betting doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, especially with the Colorado Buffaloes making the tournament this year and not last.
The state did ban March Madness player proposition betting, which could have played a role.
The betting trends in Colorado show the state may be in better shape than others for April and May. That’s when things typically began to really slow down for sportsbooks.
If people are betting pro basketball heavily, that should continue as long as the Nuggets are still alive. Last year, there was a $77 million drop in handle between March and April.
With the increase in pro basketball betting this year, however, there is a decent chance the state won’t see such a significant dip in April or May.
Tennis had another solid showing in the betting department. The sport attracted 4.9% of the wagers in March and saw $29.2 million in bets.
Hockey was next with $22.3 million. The Colorado Avalanche help with the betting there and are still alive in the NHL playoffs. Soccer saw $21.1 million in wagers for the month, followed by table tennis with $14.1 million.
Baseball, MMA and golf each saw $13 million or less wagered and “Other” sports had a total of $20.3 million in wagers.
It was a strong month for the state in March. The handle breakdown gives some reason for optimism over the next couple of months.
While the Colorado March handle hits $593 million, that figure will be tough to match in April. If the state can attract $550 million or more, they should be pretty happy.
For betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
