Barstool Sports Slashes 25% of Workforce Following $1 Sale!

Three weeks after reclaiming ownership of Barstool Sports for a symbolic $1, founder Dave Portnoy has initiated a restructuring of the company, resulting in reports of nearly 100 positions being eliminated. Portnoy confirmed these layoffs in a video statement, though he did not provide an exact count of affected employees. Barstool Sports had approximately 430 employees on its payroll before these changes were implemented.

While the news of staff reductions wasn’t entirely unexpected—Portnoy had previously indicated that such measures were forthcoming—the scale of the downsizing took many by surprise.

In a YouTube video posted on Tuesday, Portnoy expressed his sentiments: “I’ve been very clear about this. Anyone who’s been paying attention knows we are going to have layoffs and cuts, and they’ve started, and it sucks. People who know me from the beginning know I hate firing people. You can be incompetent, not work, and I generally don’t fire because I hate it so much. It’s the worst thing to do. Having said that, we’re in a position where it’s a no-brainer.”

The decision to sell Barstool Sports back to Portnoy came after Penn Entertainment entered into a partnership with ESPN to rebrand its online sports-betting business. While Portnoy didn’t disclose the company’s financial state, Penn Entertainment revealed in a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing that Barstool Sports had incurred a net loss of $16.1 million in the first six months of the year.

Collectively, Penn Entertainment anticipated a loss of up to $850 million when transferring ownership of Barstool Sports back to its founder. Portnoy, in his YouTube video on Barstool’s channel, staunchly defended the layoffs, emphasizing the need to return to a break-even point due to substantial losses.

Portnoy’s direct and assertive tone in the video drew comparisons to Elon Musk’s actions during the early days of his Twitter takeover, which involved substantial workforce reductions and increased demands on remaining employees.

Portnoy even mocked an employee expressing concern about one of the affected workers, insisting that those who remained would have to “step up.” He also predicted that news of the layoffs would result in numerous volunteers offering to work without pay.

Remote employees appear to have been a particular focus of the layoffs, as Barstool Sports aims to return to its signature format of polarizing reality television content, encompassing topics ranging from sports to adult entertainment and workplace disputes, all broadcasted.

“Dave bought the company back, and Barstool’s back to being what it is when it’s at its best—and that’s a reality show. To be part of the reality show, you gotta be in one of the offices,” explained Will Burge, a former podcaster who was impacted by the layoffs, in a tweet. “So obviously, it doesn’t make sense to have a remote employee who is not a part of the main product that Barstool is pushing at this point.”

Despite the financial losses and staff reductions, Portnoy remains optimistic about the company’s future, expressing his intention to revitalize the site to its former levels of profitability.

“I can regain control of this thing—it may be challenging for a few months getting back on track so that we’re not incurring losses, but I believe I can make this a great place to work,” Portnoy declared earlier this month.

Portnoy has consistently embraced the spotlight, engaging in various high-profile incidents, including a public dispute with Robinhood’s CEO regarding meme stocks, offering his opinions on Donald Trump’s legal issues, and even humorously announcing a presidential run in 2021 that never came to fruition.