Colorado is the sixth-highest highest sports betting states

A man makes a sports bet at the Borgata casino in Atlantic City NJ on Friday March 19, 2021, the first full day of the NCAA March Madness tournament. Last year, it was March sadness as the NCAA college basketball tournament got canceled days before it was supposed to start, due to the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)

by: DJ Summers

Posted: May 19, 2021 / 03:17 PM MDT

Updated: May 25, 2021 / 02:38 PM MDT

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DENVER (KDVR) — Add sports gambling to the growing list of areas in which Colorado is near the top of the national rankings.

Since it became legal to place sports bets in May 2020, Coloradans have bet $2.3 billion in casinos or through online sports book apps and websites. True to its Western heritage, it is now the sixth-heaviest sports gambler of U.S. states.

On average, about $200 million in wagers happen in Colorado every month.

This untapped market for sports betting puts Colorado near the top of the list of states where sports betting is legal. Following a federal 2018 court decision, the nation at large had the ability to regulate the online sports gaming industry.

Since then, only Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Nevada have seen more money wagered on sports than Colorado.

State and local entities collect their share of revenue.

To date, sports betting has generated $5.5 million in tax revenue, which has underwhelmed. Expectations were greater when voters approved legalization in 2019.

The majority of sports betting taxes are slated for the state’s water fund. Another $130,000 – about 2% of the tax haul so far – is slated for resources to assist Coloradans with gambling problems.