Penn Acquires Barstool Sports
The prominent omni-channel-focused gaming provider Penn Entertainment has revealed that it has finally completed its acquisition of media business and renowned podcast platform Barstool Sports. The closing of the deal is the final step in a long-running acquisition process that started all the way back in February 2020, when Penn bought a 36% stake in Barstool.
Penn Entertainment has announced that it has finally completed its long-awaited acquisition of media business and popular podcast platform Barstool Sports.
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Penn Paid Roughly $388 Million to Fully Acquire Remainder of Barstool Sports
The prominent single-channel gambling provider Penn Entertainment has announced the much-anticipated completion of its acquisition of media business Barstool Sports. The deal’s closing is the most recent step in a long-running acquisition saga that dates back all the way to February 2020, when Penn put down a 36% stake in Barstool.
Penn has now revealed that it handed over an additional $388 million for the remaining stake in the business, with the operator first expressing its desire to acquire the rest of the media empire back in August 2022.
Penn CEO Jay Snowden clarified that the operator felt “extremely pleased” to be bringing Barstool Sports into the Penn ecosystem. He made a point to mention the strength of the brand and its audience as being driving assets in funneling consumers towards the Pennsylvania-based operator’s beloved online sports betting products.
Penn CEO Jay Snowden Welcomes “Powerful Media Brand” Barstool into Penn Family
Marking the occasion, Penn Entertainment CEO and President, Jay Snowden, sang Barstool’s praises in a shared statement, noting how the media conglomerate will enjoy greater flexibility thanks to the help of Penn’s technology stack:
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Barstool Sports fully into the PENN Entertainment family. 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.”– Jay Snowden, CEO and President, Penn Entertainment, Press Release
Meanwhile, for its part, the notorious Founder of Barstool Sports, Dave Portnoy, praised the Barstool team and dedicated fanbase for helping it grow to the biggest point it has ever been at:
“Barstool Sports is bigger than ever and has become more than I ever dreamed of. 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.”– Dave Portnoy, Founder, Barstool Sports, Press Release
Erika Ayers, who is the CEO of Barstool Sports, marked the news as a highly significant new chapter for Barstool, once again highlighting the company’s passionate and loyal fanbase:
“This is a huge moment for Barstool Sports that was made possible by a lot of people and a lot of grit. 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.”– Erika Ayers, CEO, Barstool Sports, Press Release
Penn Migrated Sportsbook Stack Away from Kambi’s Technology in October 2022
In other recent Penn Entertainment news, betting solutions provider Kambi Group announced in October 2022 that it and Penn had both agreed to migrate Penn’s online and retail sportsbooks over from Kambi to Penn’s own proprietary technology system.
The migration has yet to come, though, with the move being expected to first take place for its online sportsbook during the third quarter of 2023. The transition also opens up the potential for ongoing revenue share payments to online and retail sports betting services.
Kambi co-founder and chief executive Kristian Nylen chose to highlight the two’s continued working relationship moving forward:
“This agreement sets out the continued collaboration between the two parties over the coming years, one which secures certain ongoing revenue for Kambi over the transition period. Furthermore, the terms also provide Kambi with additional protections with regards to our data and intellectual property.”
Former Penn Employee Charged with Insider Trading in June 2022
And in some less than flattering news for Penn, one of its former employees was charged by the The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in June 2022 with insider trading on a public company’s stock.
When Penn National was mulling over a potential acquisition of Score Media and Gaming, Inc. in July 2021, Roda became privy to the information but still chose to use the non-public information and purchased 200 Score Media call option contracts for approximately $13,000.
US Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Jennifer Arbittier Williams, stressed how such behavior degrades the integrity of the United States’ financial markets:
“Insider trading undermines faith in our financial markets and harms ordinary investors who play by the rules. As alleged, David Roda placed himself above the law by using information to which he had privileged access to cheat the market and other investors. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to maintain the integrity of the financial markets.”
