A dominant Avalanche Stanley Cup run spurred three-fold increase in Colorado public betting

One benefit of legal sports betting is the boost it can provide to a local economy, and a great example of that is the money that rolled into Colorado as the Avalanche skated their way to the Stanley Cup.

The Colorado Division of Gaming reported nearly $97 million in wagers on the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, according to a report by KKTV 11 News in Colorado Springs, more than tripling the amount of hockey bets it received in the same period in 2021.

Colorado bettors wagered about $30 million on the Stanley Cup Final alone, eclipsing the $26 million wagered in all of May and June 2021 combined. The public apparently wasn’t fazed by the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning.

“When you look at where the standard was and then you look at where they are this year, going almost three times as much, you really can tell that Colorado really got excited about the Avalanche going for the Cup and being in the finals,” Division of Gaming director Dan Hartman said

Sports betting was legalized in Colorado in 2019, with the first licensed operators hitting the market in May 2020.