The deal is done and PENN Entertainment now has full ownership of Barstool Sports. The gaming company first acquired a share of Barstool in 2020. A little over three years later, PENN has completed its purchase for an additional $388 million.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Barstool Sports fully into the PENN Entertainment family,” PENN Entertainment CEO and President, Jay Snowden, said in a press release. “Barstool is a proven, powerful media brand with an authentic voice and vast, loyal audience that provides us with a strong top of funnel for new customer acquisition and organic cross-selling opportunities across our growing interactive division.
“Barstool, combined with theScore’s reach and highly engaged user base, creates a massive digital footprint and ecosystem that will serve to propel Barstool Sportsbook and our uniquely integrated media and gaming business. Further, the Barstool Sportsbook will greatly benefit from the upcoming migration to our proprietary technology stack, a move that will significantly enhance the overall product offering and deliver meaningful upside.”
PENN initially purchased a 38% stake in Barstool Sports. Last year, it publicly announced its intention to acquire the remaining 62% in a separate transaction.
“Barstool Sports is bigger than ever and has become more than I ever dreamed of,” said Dave Portnoy, Founder of Barstool Sports. “I’m very thankful to the Barstool team and Stoolies who have been along for the ride. I’m looking forward to this next chapter with PENN.”
Since entering into business together, PENN has helped grow the Barstool Sportsbook across fifteen states. It has also launched retail betting locations under the Barstool brand.
The partnership has yielded serious growth and evolution for Barstool, too. The company has grown its audience by 194%, including 1.6 billion podcast downloads. It has also become heavily involved in college sports with the launch of a college basketball invitational and the Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl.
“This is a huge moment for Barstool Sports that was made possible by a lot of people and a lot of grit,” said Erika Ayers, CEO of Barstool Sports. “Our focus has always been to create relevant and entertaining content for our fans and to deliver strong results for our partners. It’s exciting to have that vision recognized and to be able to put it to work inside of PENN. We have the best fan base on the planet, and we look forward to doing even more for them with PENN’s support.”
