Colorado Sports Betting
Betting on sports is now lawful!
Late last year in 2019, Colorado became the 19th state to legalize sports betting. The time frame for opening sports betting to the public is May 2020 at the earliest. In the meantime, sports betting via offshore sportsbook sites remain available.
Welcome to the Colorado Sports Betting Guide! We will lead you through all the latest news, sports betting legality, sports betting locations and much much more.
Top 3 Sports Betting Sites in Colorado
Colorado Sports Betting
- On Nov 5, 2019 Proposition DD was put to the ballot for the people to vote on. It is was simply a “Yes” to legalize and a “No” to not. Other details were also provided for the people to consider with their Yes/No vote. The “Yes” vote exceeded the “No” vote by the slimmest of margins, thus permitting legalization of sports betting in Colorado.
- Proposition DD outlined that mobile devices will be able to be used to place a bet. The placing of sports bets can be placed anywhere in the state, which meant the sports bettor need not be on-site of a licensed sports book operator to be able to place a bet.
- Currently, the amended law only allows existing casino operators in Colorado may apply to become a “Master license” sports book operator. No other entities are allowed to apply for a sports betting Master License. The licensed sports book operators may therefore form partnerships with established sports betting software providers to create online sports betting sites and mobile applications.
- The vision outlined in Proposition DD allows bettors to perform online registration and submission of personal ID – a completely digital registration process. This differs from many other states that have legalized sports betting and require on-site personal identification.
- This is a huge paradigm shift in the Colorado gambling scene, whereby there is no current digital form of betting.
Online Sport Betting Sites and Mobile Apps
Online sport betting sites and mobile sport betting apps will be able to distribute sports betting to bettors anywhere and anytime within the borders of Colorado.
There is no requirement that bets must be placed on-site at a licensed casino.
Currently only existing licensed casino operators in Colorado are allowed to apply for a Master license. Existing casino operators include those in Central City, Black Hawk and Cripple Creek. A Master license allows for the conducting of sports betting. A holder of a Master license is permitted to work with a Sports betting operator and/or Internet sports betting operator to provide sports betting to the public.
Since onshore online sports betting sites and mobile apps remain unavailable until May 2020 at the earliest, Colorado sports bettors may continue to place a sports bet at offshore providers.
Sport Betting at the Casinos
In addition to placing a bet online and via a mobile app, sports bettors will be able to visit a license sports book operator at their casino. They will be able to place their bets at a window or sports betting kiosk and enjoy the action at a sports entertainment center that will include a sports bar and HD tv screens to watch all the action.
Colorado Sport Games and Events that a sports bet can be placed on
Each sport must be authorized by the Colorado Division of Gaming. The official listing of approved sports has yet to be formally issued but almost certainly include all major professional sports.
College games will also be included as an approved sport. But they must be first sanctioned by the sports governing body, if they are not sanctioned bets will not be accepted. Please note: Proposition bets are not allowed on College games.
Proposition bets are placed on specific events of a game, such as kicking a field goal, hitting a free throw. These specific event can be easily manipulated by a player and therefore were not legalized. Thus, to prevent influencing college players from manipulating the outcome of sports betting, proposition bets are illegal for college games.
E-sports is permitted and is consider as a form of sport.
High school sports remains illegal to place a bet on.
Sports Betting Limits
Proposition DD allows casinos the flexibility to set the betting limits for each sport and sporting event. It is therefore uncertain whether any limits will be placed as we are still in the infancy of Colorado sports betting. We will have to wait as we draw nearer to May 2020 to know whether each individual sports book operator will place a betting limit.
At the moment, anticipate that there will be no sports betting limit.
This is a huge difference to current casino gaming laws whereby casino game betting limits are placed at a maximum of $100.
Colorado Sports Betting Payment Methods
Proposition DD does not outline the payment methods for depositing and withdrawal. However it is expected that cash, credit cards, e-wallets and other digital payment methods will be accepted.
Colorado Sports Betting Tax
A 10% tax rate will be applied to casino profits that are derived from sports gambling. Most of the funds raised will be assigned to the Colorado Water Plan, however a steering committee may allocate monies to various community projects in Colorado. It is projected that $15 million will be raised during the first and second year of sports betting.
Popular Sport Bets in Colorado
Colorado is one of the best states to place a bet on a local team. The Denver Broncos are a formidable team, when they want to turn up, but are a long shot to win the Superbowl. The Denver Nuggets are placed similar to the Broncos in respect to winning the NBA Championship. A formidable team against low to middle tier teams, but struggle against the top teams.
Having said that, support your local team by placing a bet.
- NFL – Colorado has one NFL football team, the Denver Broncos.
- NBA – Colorado has one NBA basketball team, the Denver Nuggets.
- MLB – Colorado has one Major League baseball team, the Colorado Rockies.
- NHL – Colorado has one NHL ice hockey teams, the Colorado Avalanche.
Sports Gambling Laws and Legislation in Colorado
With the successful voting via ballot of Proposition DD, the Colorado legislature was therefore able to approve bill HB19-1327. This formally put in place an amendment to the constitution to legalize sports betting in the state of Colorado.
Sports betting is governed and regulated by the Colorado Department of Revenue, with compliance and licensing through the Colorado Division of Gaming.
Sports Betting Licensing
In order to operate a sports book in Colorada a license must be acquired. There are three types of licenses:
- Master license,
- Sports betting operator,
- Internet sports betting operator.
Sports Betting Taxation Rules
A 10% tax rate will be applied on the profits derived from sports betting. The funds raised through the tax will be dedicated to supporting community works and other initiatives as determined by a steering committee. At present most of the funds will be used for the Capital Water Plan. In addition 6% of funds raised from sports betting will be set up aside for future potential losses from cannibalized funds raised from casino gaming activities. The lawmakers recognized that casino gaming revenue may reduce as a result of legalizing sports betting and hence put this tax in place.
Online Casino and Poker Laws
The new sports betting law does not influence or change the existing casino and poker laws regarding online play. The current law for online casino and poker remains outdated and ambiguous. Thus many players can continue to play at offshore online casino operators.
Colorado Bordering States
- Arizona – Remains illegal. ETA 2021 for legalization.
- Kansas – Remains illegal. ETA 2021 for legalization.
- Nebraska – Remains illegal and highly unlikely to legalize.
- New Mexico – Legal.
- Oklahoma – Remains illegal. ETA 2021 for legalization.
- Utah – Remains illegal and highly unlikely to legalize.
- Wyoming – Remains illegal and highly unlikely to legalize.
