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The devil works hard, but El Presidente works harder. Dave Portnoy; the pizza man, inventor of the internet, and founder of Barstool Sports, has struck a deal to buy back the company from PENN Entertainment.
This comes after fans have felt a change in direction of the company, with stricter guidelines and restrictions on the content people in regards to gambling. The main reason for the deal was a blockbuster move by PENN, which acquired the rights to operate the ESPN-branded sportsbooks. ESPN, who has had it's fair share of downfall especially as the so-called Worldwide Leader in Sports, now attempts to make its biggest push yet into the sports gambling market. The sportsbook will operate in 16 states where PENN currently operates mobile sportsbooks (aka the Barstool Sportsbook), and will pay ESPN a whopping $1.5 billion over the next 10 years, with ESPN holding warrants to purchase 31.8 million shares of PENN worth $500 million, which will vest over the same period. In stock market news, $PENN rose as much as 25% late Tuesday following the news.
Because of the conflicting markets, PENN said it sold Barstool Sports back to its founder. Unfortunately, Barstool won't have it's own sportsbook, but it will be able to go back to their roots and provide authentic content for consumers.
Per Yahoo Finance, PENN initially purchased a 36% stake ($163 million) in Barstool in 2019, before buying the full balance this year at $388 million.
The real kicker is that Portnoy might have actually fleeced PENN. The terms of the deal for Portnoy states that PENN has the right to receive 50% of the gross proceeds received by David Portnoy in any subsequent sale or other monetization event of Barstool. Portnoy, however, said that the company is dying with him and will be passed down for generations.
This is major news, not only as a fan, but as media overall. Like it or not, Portnoy stays winning and the world keeps spinning.