While sports betting had been outlawed in the United States since 1992, recently, in a landmark ruling, the US Supreme Court declared that 1992 law unconstitutional, thus allowing states to legalize sports betting if they wanted to. This has led to a flurry of states going ahead and allowing sports betting to take place on their territory, with 19 states and territories having done so at last count. Colorado is one of the most recent additions to this list, with a November 2019 bill being passed to allow people in the state to bet on sporting events, starting May 1st, 2020. With that date now having passed, sports betting is now officially legal in the state, with many websites even having a list of legal CO sportsbooks for fans to check and start using.
There is a lot of excitement about this development in the state, with many sports betting operators setting up shop for fans to get a taste of the action. The likes of BetRivers, DraftKings Sportsbook and FanDuel Sportsbook are all online and available in the state now, and this is just the tip of the iceberg, with operators such as William Hill, FOX Bet and BetMGM all having acquired licenses to operate sports betting websites in the state. In total, 14 sports betting operators have currently been granted licenses to operate in Colorado, with most of them going live in the next few months, while some are ready and are available right now. There is a lot of potential in the Colorado market, and if the example of New Jersey is anything to go by, where mobile sports betting already accounts for more than 80% of all sports bets being placed, there could be an explosion in the industry in Colorado in the upcoming months and years.
Residents over the age of 21 are allowed to make sports bets in Colorado, with betting limits being decided by the individual sportsbook provider. This is at odds with the law for online gambling, where a bet cannot be larger than $100. However, there will be limits placed on how much certain gamblers can bet, with the targets being professional sports bettors, which will allow fans and recreational bettors to have a better experience. People in other states will need to open a different account in Colorado, even if their sports betting provider launches in the state and they already have an account with them. This is also applicable for the physical location of players, with them needing to be physically present within the state’s boundaries for the betting provider to accept bets. Opening accounts is fairly easy, with most operators having apps for their sports betting services. Of course, care needs to be taken to only use legal betting services and not offshore operators. Some sites may need a deposit before a bet can be made, with others allowing free bets, but in any case, there will be an age and identity verification done before any funds and winnings can be withdrawn.
All of these developments make for an extremely exciting time in the next few weeks and months for Colorado-based sports betting fans.
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