Colorado Implements New Rules for Sports Betting and Addiction Prevention

Colorado bans credit card deposits for sports betting

Colorado gamblers will no longer be allowed to use credit cards to make deposits on sports betting apps, and their deposits will be limited to six per day, beginning Wednesday.

The new rules are part of the bipartisan Senate Bill 26-131 passed in May by the Colorado General Assembly amid growing concerns over rising addiction, especially among young men and boys. The bill’s sponsors hope the new guardrails will slow bettors, who play frequently as they chase their financial losses.

The deposit limits are counted on a rolling 24-hour basis.

Sports betting companies began informing their customers this month of the rule changes.

In an email to its customers, FanDuel, one of the country’s largest online gambling companies, explained the deposit limits and said some users might start seeing the changes as early as Thursday.

“Each deposit counts toward your limit for 24 hours from the time it is made,” the email said. “Once 24 hours have passed, that deposit no longer counts toward your limit, allowing you to make another deposit.”

Five sportsbooks stopped accepting credit cards in the past year amid growing criticism that people should not gamble with money they don’t have.

Thirteen online sportsbooks licensed to operate in Colorado

The new law also prohibits sports betting companies from targeting Coloradans who are younger than 21 and bans advertising when the majority of an audience is reasonably expected to be younger than 21.

The law will also require sports betting operators to report annual transactional data and metrics to the Colorado Division of Gaming, starting Feb. 1, 2028, and a public report based on that data will be released every three years, beginning on Jan. 1, 2029.

“Pernicious algorithms and advertisements are increasingly preying on vulnerable online sports bettors,” state Sen. Matt Ball, D-Denver, said in a news release about the law changes taking effect. “Since Colorado’s legalization of online sports betting in 2019, technology has rapidly transformed the industry, catching more and more people in the cycle of devastating gambling addiction. As online sports betting continues its rise in popularity, we must ensure there are reasonable protections in place to help prevent addiction, protect underage Coloradans, and uphold the integrity of the game and its athletes.”

Colorado Sports Betting Hits Record $6.4 B

Colorado’s gamblers bet $6.4 billion on sports during the last year, setting a record for the amount of money wagered since sportsbooks opened in May 2020.