I heard about Dave Portnoy’s newest $28 million mansion buy in a gaggle chat. The man who shared the information additionally posed: “I am unable to work out if I really like or hate this man.” The opposite half-dozen guys on the chain, together with myself, rapidly replied, “Love him.”
Here is why I’m a fan of Dave. First off, I don’t care about sports activities. I do not care which staff he is selecting to guess for or in opposition to this week. I do not care what Dave thinks of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. I really like Dave’s skilled enterprise story.
For individuals who should not conscious, Dave based Barstool Sports activities again in 2003 initially AS A PRINT PUBLICATION! The paper provided fantasy sports activities predictions, gaming advertisements, and sports activities protection. The web site wasn’t launched till 2007. Over the subsequent ten years, Barstool would develop into an unlikely sports activities media powerhouse.
In 2016, Dave first offered a majority stake in Barstool Sports activities to The Chernin Group. In January 2020, Penn Gaming acquired a 36% stake from the founders for $163 million. This buy got here with an possibility to purchase your complete firm at a future date. In August 2022, Penn Gaming exercised that possibility to purchase Barstool outright at a valuation of $390 million.
In a shock twist, on August 8, 2023, it was revealed that Penn divested its stake in Barstool as a part of a separate licensing deal it had signed with ESPN. Consequently, Penn agreed to sell Barstool back to Dave for $1.00.
To recap – From begin to end, over all transactions, Penn Gaming paid $550 million to purchase Barstool. Then simply 12 months after securing its largest and most respected stake, Penn offered all of it again to Portnoy for a buck. Dave has since vowed by no means to surrender management once more.
Over the course of every of those transactions, Dave acquired very rich. By our estimate, the unique Pen Gaming deal in 2020 pushed his internet price to $100 million for the primary time. Based mostly on the latter transactions and right now’s estimated worth of Barstool, we presently peg Dave Portnoy’s net worth at $250 million. Oh. And that $250 million features a actually spectacular actual property portfolio.
$97 Million Actual Property Portfolio
In 2015, Dave made his first main actual property buy when he purchased a waterfront dwelling in Nantucket for about $2 million. In 2023, he shattered a Massachusetts sales record by paying $42 million for a six-bedroom, 8,600-square-foot compound in Nantucket’s Monomoy space.
In 2021, Portnoy paid slightly below $14 million for a nine-bedroom, Nineteen Thirties-era mansion in Miami’s Morningside neighborhood, setting a report for the world. The bayfront property options 150 toes of waterfront, a pool, cabana, and guesthouse. After buying this mansion, he launched into in depth renovations. Sadly, as he has made clear over social media, the challenge grew to become infamous for delays and a mould drawback that was reportedly so dangerous that he threatened to take authorized motion in opposition to his contractor.
In 2021, he additionally purchased a newly constructed dwelling within the Hamptons hamlet of Montauk, paying round $9.75 million in an off-market deal.
In 2023, Portnoy purchased a $1.4 million dwelling in Saratoga Springs, New York, overlooking the Oklahoma Coaching Monitor. A lifelong racing fan and thoroughbred proprietor, he changed the prevailing Nineteen Sixties construction with a brand new two-story dwelling that includes a big patio and direct monitor views.
After which there’s his most up-to-date transaction, which accurately closed on the A number of Itemizing Service right now. It was simply revealed, as first noted by the Wall Street Journal, that Dave has paid yet one more record-setting (for the world) $27.75 million for a 1.65-acre island compound situated in Islamorada, Florida. The compound features a 7,600-square-foot predominant home, a 2,700-square-foot guesthouse, two swimming pools, a non-public dock, and an outside pizza oven — a unusual however becoming contact for the person behind the “One Chunk Pizza Critiques.”
Assuming he nonetheless owns his first Nantucket home, and he does seem to nonetheless personal each different property talked about above, within the final decade, Dave has spent $96.9 million on actual property. And you already know what, I believe he is earned it! Here’s a video tour of his newest Florida island compound buy:
Whether or not you like or hate him, you need to admit, who else in historical past has turned pizza critiques and sports activities banter right into a quarter-billion-dollar internet price with a $100 million actual property empire?