ESPN will launch a rebranded sports betting sportsbook after it agreed to a $1.5 billion deal with PENN Entertainment.
That was huge news, but it came only after news about Barstool Sports.
David Portnoy, the founder of Barstool Sports, is once again the owner of his media brand, after buying it back from Penn Entertainment.
As part of the announcement, PENN said it sold Barstool Sports back to its founder, Dave Portnoy. PENN initially purchased a 36% stake in Barstool for $163 million back in 2019. It was just earlier this year when the company purchased the balance of Barstool for an additional $388 million.
Barstool is back to its original founder and it seems he did by paying next to nothing.
Joe Pompliano of Huddle Up shows a $0 purchase n the sale. It should be noted that other stipulations exist.
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Dave Portnoy had to agree to “certain non-compete and other restrictive covenants.”
Barstool will also not be able to advertise sportsbooks and Penn would receive 50% of a future sale. PENN said in a press release Tuesday that the company, “also has the right to receive 50% of the gross proceeds received by David Portnoy in any subsequent sale or other monetization event of Barstool.”
As part of the deal, the companies will launch a branded sportsbook, ESPN BET, this fall in the 16 states where PENN currently operates mobile sportsbooks.
It seems like everybody won out on this deal.
