After purchasing Barstool Sports back from Penn Entertainment for just $1, Dave Portnoy is now actively working to turn around the company’s financial situation, which he claims was resulting in significant losses.
During an interview on The Kirk Minihane Show, Portnoy confessed that although he didn’t have an exact figure on Barstool’s losses under Penn’s ownership, he was aware of the negative trend.
Initially, Portnoy had contemplated leaving the company altogether but ultimately decided to reclaim it. “I was mentally checked out and not involved in the business side of things,” Portnoy admitted.
Barstool Sports losing millions. pic.twitter.com/QNnVsgHB3f
— Gulf-SchemePark (@Jackpotkimm) August 22, 2023
However, he remains optimistic about bringing Barstool back to a profitable state, acknowledging it may be a challenging process initially. According to a recent SEC filing made by Penn on August 9, Barstool incurred a net loss of $16.1 million in the first six months of 2023.
This financial situation seems to have motivated Portnoy to publicly criticize employees who were not present in the New York office on his first day back. He has also openly commented on the financial decisions made by current employees.
Furthermore, the company recently went through a round of layoffs, mainly affecting remote workers who were unable to contribute to the company’s trademark “pirate ship” atmosphere that was paramount to Barstool’s success in its early days.
Notably, Will Burge, a podcast host based in Cleveland, was one of the employees let go. Burge had joined the company in February 2022 when it was still under Penn’s ownership.
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