Dave Portnoy begins layoffs at Barstool Sports

Big changes are afoot at Barstool Sports.

Dave Portnoy was admitted to Barstool Radio this week that layoffs are in progress in his company.

The pay cuts come just weeks after he bought back Barstool Sports for $1 in a deal with Penn Entertainment.

“I made myself very clear. We’ll have everyone who was paying attention layoffs and cuts, and they started and it sucks,” Portnoy said. “And people who have known me since the beginning, 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 you can do.

“Nevertheless, we are able to take it for granted. It’s not like I have those morals – well, you can’t do it because nobody’s going to have a job. We will all have no work. So we need to return to a breakeven level. We lose a lot and it sucks.”

Portnoy founded Barstool Sports in 2003.

In 2016 he sold a majority of Barstool to The Chernin Group.

Earlier this year, Penn Entertainment completed the acquisition of Barstool for a total of $551 million.

Penn lost about $800 million at Barstool, which the company originally hoped would boost its sports betting business by affiliating with one of the most well-known brands in sports media.

Following the sale, Penn Entertainment announced it was partnering with ESPN to rebrand its existing sportsbook.

Portnoy called the situation a “win-win” and wished ESPN and Penn Entertainment the best of luck in their relationship.

“More importantly for us, at Barstool, for the first time in ages we don’t have to watch what we say, how we talk, what we do,” Portnoy said. “It goes back to the pirate ship. By the way, I will never sell Barstool Sports [again], always. I’ll hold out until I die.”

While that may be the case, Portnoy is urging those who remain in the trenches with him to prepare for a bumpy ride, saying “people need to try harder.”