Don’t anticipate any 11th hour changes, Dave Portnoy fully expects the Barstool Sports partnership with SiriusXM to end later this month.
Although when he most recently discussed the topic, Portnoy said its 99.8% that Barstool and SiriusXM will part ways this month, which left the door slightly more open to an agreement than the 99.9% certainty he touted in October. When he brought it up a few months ago, it seemed like a possible negotiation ploy, but Portnoy remains consistent and clear, he fully expects Barstool Radio to end on SiriusXM this month.
During episode 15 of The Dave Portnoy Show with Eddie & Co which was released earlier this week, Barstool’s president said, “I think we’re pretty much done. It’s over.”
Barstool’s partnership with SiriusXM began as a daily two-hour radio show in Jan. 2017. One year later, Jan. 15, 2018, Barstool Sports launched an exclusive 24-hour channel on SiriusXM. According to Portnoy, Barstool’s tenure with the satellite company will end this month, on or around Jan. 19.
“I’ll let Erika [Nardini] be the ultimate confirmation,” Portnoy added. “But at last checked, I would be very surprised if we’re continuing. I think we’re gonna try to do some sort of radio ourselves. I mean Sirius treats us like they don’t want us to be honest.”
Portnoy went on to say the offer SiriusXM made to keep Barstool Radio is not even worth considering. Despite having different opinions on the monetary value of Barstool Radio, Portnoy said there are no bad feelings, the divorce is just a business decision.
Barstool Sports has grown immensely since their 24-hour channel launched on SiriusXM three years ago. As a multiplatform media company, satellite radio might not be as important to the Barstool brand as it once was. Their fanatical following and massive audience will find and consume content wherever it’s housed.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
