Now an independent company again, Barstool Sports is pursuing new media deals, with talent agency UTA set to represent it and its founder, Dave Portnoy, as well as its roster of in-house creators.
The irreverent and often controversial digital sports brand has become a powerhouse among young men, with a large presence on social platforms like TikTok and X, as well as YouTube. It also produced a number of podcasts in the sports and culture space, including the popular Pardon My Take.
Barstool was founded by Portnoy in 2003, who subsequently sold a majority stake to Peter Chernin’s The Chernin Group in 2016. The brand would go on to be acquired by the casino company Penn Entertainment in 2020 for a total of $551 million.
Just three years later, after inking a deal with ESPN to launch ESPN Bet, Penn sold Barstool back to Portnoy for $1.
“For us, for Barstool, for the first time in forever, we don’t have to watch what we say, how we talk, what we do,” Portnoy said at the time. “It’s back to the pirate ship. And by the way, I am never going to sell Barstool Sports ever. I’ll hold it till I die.”
The media company would go on to ink a sports betting deal with DraftKings.
Barstool has explored media deals before. It secured some college sports rights in recent years, and streamed the NYPD vs. FDNY annual hockey game.
Since the split with Penn, however, it has leaned into its culture and sports creator focus, led by its staff.
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