Barstool Sports is firing shots in a new book, and ESPN personality Sarah Spain is squarely in the crosshairs.
In their just-released Pardon My Take book, co-hosts Dan “Big Cat” Katz and PFT Commenter pull back the curtain on the messy 2017 collapse of their short-lived ESPN show, Barstool Van Talk. The show was pulled after just one episode, with then-ESPN President John Skipper citing internal backlash over the network's partnership with the notoriously edgy Barstool brand.
But the book goes further, pointing a finger directly at Spain, claiming she was part of a coordinated effort to sabotage the collaboration before it ever got off the ground.
“We won’t use any names, but Sarah Thiscountriescapitalcityismadrid, had gotten wind of the Pardon My Take crossover collab that might be happening in the fall,” they write, per Awful Announcing. “And she did not handle that news well at all.”
According to the book, Spain, along with fellow ESPN host Katie Nolan, hatched what they describe as a “mutiny” plan during an espnW summit. The hosts allege Spain was frustrated because she had cycled through dozens of short-term projects and was hoping to land her own show, only to see an outside podcast get the TV slot instead.
“Sarah had done like 40 different 3-month projects and was really hoping to get her own show, so when she found out that PMT was getting a TV show, she and a few others at the espnW summit tried to hatch a plan of mutiny,” they write.
Spain hasn't publicly responded to the accusations, but the book doesn't stop there. It also revisits Barstool's long-running feud with ESPN host Sam Ponder, who publicly criticized the network for partnering with Barstool after founder Dave Portnoy and Big Cat made crude remarks about her on a 2014 podcast.
While the authors acknowledge Ponder's grievances were understandable, they take a far harsher tone with Spain. “But Sarah Spain? We figured she just didn’t like that we were getting a TV show and she wasn’t,” they write. “Petty.”
The book also lays significant blame on John Skipper, who they say mishandled the entire partnership from the start. PFT Commenter noted that the first piece of Barstool content Skipper ever saw was a PG-13 blog about a pumpkin, and that Skipper later seemed confused about the nature of the deal despite the show being literally named Barstool Van Talk.
“There are a lot of things Skipper (expletive) up with the entire engagement and he would be the first to tell you that the Barstool/ESPN break-up was almost entirely his fault,” they write.
Since the split, Barstool has only grown bigger, and Pardon My Take has become one of the most popular sports podcasts in the world. The book offers a behind-the-scenes look at one of the more bizarre chapters in sports media, and Spain is now the latest figure to be dragged into the spotlight.
For more on the ongoing tensions in sports media, check out the recent criticism of WNBA leadership and the blunt remarks from Dan Dakich.
