The state of Colorado will soon feature in-state, regulated sports betting and is preparing for a May 1st rollout. Voters were able to approve of Proposition DD, allowing for legal sports betting in Colorado.
Colorado residents, or visitors to the state, that are interested in placing a sports bet after May 1st have a few options. The first is visiting one of the brick-and-mortar casinos in one of Colorado’s three gaming cities, Cripple Creek, Central City, and Black Hawk.
If you don’t feel like making the trek down to one of Colorado’s gaming-friendly areas, no problem. Sportsbooks from these areas offer betting apps for your mobile phone, or you can log in via your computer and join in on the betting action.
If you are too far away from these betting regions, and your internet or smartphone is acting up, you still have the option of calling a regulated, in-state sportsbook and placing a wager over the phone.
Westword is reporting that Colorado sportsbooks are unlikely to turn a profit during the first year of accepting sports wagers. Casinos are spending loads of money on sportsbook related advertising which will cut into the initial intake of profit.
Twin Rivers Worldwide Holdings has made a big splash in the area by purchasing three casinos and signing a deal with DraftKings and FanDuel. The partnership will aid in the three casinos’ mobile and online presence and will also include a retail DraftKings sportsbook located inside of the casinos. The DraftKings outpost has been hailed as an unparalleled sports betting experience.
Now that legal sports betting has been given the official green-light in Colorado, a decision must be made regarding how proposition bets are handled. Prop bets typically involve individual outcomes and sometimes do not affect the result of the game. An example would be a bet on which side the opening coin toss will land.
The task of assigning how prop bets will be handled has been given to the Colorado Limited Gaming Control Commission. The commission oversees what types of bets will be accepted in Colorado, as well as what sports and leagues will be wagered on.
If a Colorado sportsbook is interested in adding a new prop bet, they will have to apply to the Gaming Control Commission for permission. Once the commission has approved the new wager, then any sportsbook operating in the state can offer it.
A similar application process will be used for the addition of new leagues or sports to the betting lines that sportsbooks can offer. Casinos will have to individually make an effort to keep with the latest in sports betting trends.
The commission also intends to maintain a catalog of allowable bets that will be provided to the sportsbooks. It would seem that the only difference from sportsbook to sportsbook will be the odds being offered.
Local Colorado sportsbooks will open their counters and begin accepting wagers on May 1st. Still, the only thing certain is that the gaming commission will have a lot of red-tape to cut through, and a lot of needless work that they’ll need to streamline sooner than later. With any luck, everything will be ironed out in time to bet on the Super Bowl next year.