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Penn Ditches Barstool Sports for ESPN, Sells Company Back to Dave Portnoy

Portnoy blamed the “regulatory world” and mainstream media for the split, which he billed as a “win-win.”

Penn Entertainment has sold Barstool Sports back to founder Dave Portnoy in order to partner with ESPN and rebrand its sportsbooks, the company announced Tuesday. Portnoy confirmed the news himself, revealing in a video posted to social media that he owns “100%” of Barstool “for the first time in a decade.” He blamed the “regulatory world” and the mainstream media for the split, which he billed as a “win-win” since Barstool won’t have to “watch what we say, how we talk, what we do.” Portnoy added: “We got denied licenses because of me ... You name it. So the regulated industry probably not the best place for Barstool Sports and the content we make.” Penn’s new partnership with ESPN will see it pay $1.5 billion to the worldwide leader in sports over the next 10 years. In 2020, Barstool announced its sale to Penn for roughly $551 million—an acquisition that just wrapped up earlier this year.