David Portnoy

 Portnoy left the Yankee Group after four years and founded Barstool Sports in 2003. The newspaper was created to attract young men who were against the concept of political correctness, and was four pages in length. The first advertisers for the newspaper were betting websites that were offshore like PartyPoker.com. But, it was also when freelance writers such as Todd McShay joined the paper. The newspaper was initially struggling however it began to gain popularity in 2004, when Portnoy began putting photos of bikinis-clad women on the front page of the newspaper. Barstool Sports was transformed into an online blog in 2007. Portnoy slowly developed his reputation as "El Presidente", an open and honest person. His writing was well-received by males in the younger age group and the blog became an integral part of the bro culture. His unapologetic, bold style of writing made him a cult character among young men. The publication was an essential part of the bro-culture. Penn National Gaming purchased 36% of Barstool Sports from its founders in 2020 for $163 million, that included $135 million in cash and $28 million of Penn convertible preferred stock. The Chernin Group retained a 36% stake in the business. Portnoy, who continues to oversee the site and retains the creative control, holds 36% of the shares.