There has been plenty of anticipation around the launch of the Barstool sports betting app. It was officially available to those in Pennsylvania on Friday.
Penn National Gaming partnered with Barstool back in January of this year to serve as its US sports betting brand. PNG paid $163 million to acquire one-third ownership.
This launch has been delayed several times. Penn National made it clear that it did not want to rush the product if it was not ready.
“What’s more important? Rushing it and getting to some MLB and NBA games in August? Or doing this right, launching it in September when we know it will deliver a great experience (user interface, user experience) for the end-user? We’re in this for the long game,” said Penn National CEO Jay Snowden.
By doing this, they did miss out on the biggest month in sports betting history for Pennsylvania. With the return of sports in the US, the state had a $365 million handle in August.
The stock of Penn National has still been performing well. It was at $4.52 per share in mid-March, which was in the heart of the pandemic. However, the stock was sitting at $70.60 on Sunday.
Barstool’s Dave Portnoy
The excitement around this launch had much to do with Barstool founder Dave Portnoy. He is often on social media discussing the brand and Penn National stock.
He discussed the haters and critics that have much to say about what the company does.
“Obviously, my haters of which there are many are hoping we fail,” said Portnoy. “Well, I have an undying faith in the loyalty of our fans that make me believe we will do what we always do, and that’s shut up the critics and astound Wall Street with our performance.”
Barstool is popular for the personalities that they have on their platforms. This app has favorite picks from some of their personalities, including Portnoy, Dan “Big Cat” Matz, Matt “Marty Mush” Cahill, and Brandon Walker.
More States to Come
Pennsylvania is the first state to welcome Barstool’s betting app, but it surely won’t be the last. Penn National gaming runs online casinos in Colorado, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, and West Virginia.
Barstool is encouraging people to download the app and stay up to date on information no matter where they live. They sent out an email to customers on Friday that read:
“To keep updated on our future expansion plans, you can download the Barstool Sportsbook App today regardless of where you live, and hopefully, we will be legal in your state very soon.”
With the status of Penn National Gaming and Barstool Sports, this app will more than likely only grow more popular over time. More states are planning to add the sportsbook to their portfolio, while even more states continue to vote on legalizing sports betting.
It will be interesting to see how the stock performs in the coming weeks now that the app has been released.