PENN Entertainment has informed investors that it has exercised its right to acquire 100% of the outstanding shares in Barstool Sports.
The firm – which recently rebranded from Penn National Gaming, first acquired a 36% stake in the sports media firm in February 2020 for a total consideration for $163m.
It subsequently secured additional shares to increase its ownership to around 50% for an additional $62m, which was originally noted to occur following three years.
However, recent developments, including the withdrawal of theScore Bet from the US to focus on the Canadian market, has seen PENN take 100% control of the media and sports outfit, which now becomes a 100% wholly owned subsidiary.
Updating the market, PENN stated: “As previously disclosed, PENN Entertainment, Inc. has call rights with respect to all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Barstool Sports, Inc not already owned by PENN. PENN has exercised these call rights to bring its ownership of Barstool to 100%.
“The acquisition of the remaining Barstool shares is expected to be completed in February 2023, after which Barstool will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of PENN.
“Completion of the acquisition at that time is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including the absence of any governmental order or law prohibiting such acquisition and the expiration of termination of any applicable waiting period.”
Publishing its Q2 financial results, PENN informed investors that Barstool Sports has expanded its social reach by ‘delivering highly engaging and relevant content’, whilst the Barstool Sportsbook was preparing to migrate onto the new tech stack during Q3 2023.
In the same report, it was noted that Barstool was continuing to develop, with Barstool retail sportsbook ‘resonating with the younger demographic’.
The report noted: “Our Barstool branded retail sportsbooks resonate with the younger demographics and create meaningful cross-sell opportunities. Our recently converted Barstool sportsbook in Lake Charles, Louisiana, set a new standard for retail sportsbook experiences, and we are seeing encouraging results in visitation and spend.
“We are on track to convert our existing temporary sportsbook to a Barstool sportsbook at L’Auberge Baton Rouge this fall where we expect to have a similar positive impact. Based on our ongoing success in Louisiana, we are optimistic about our upcoming Barstool branded retail sportsbook launches in Kansas and Ohio where we operate similar market-leading properties bolstered by large casino databases that should augment our omni-channel strategy.”
