Dave Portnoy Vows To 'Quit Football' After Controversial Officiating Cost Him $1M Super Bowl Bet

Dave Portnoy declared he has "quit football" after expressing dissatisfaction with the officiating during the Buffalo Bills versus the Kansas City Chiefs AFC Championship game.

The Barstool Sports founder made the announcement on X (formerly Twitter) while sharing a clip from the game. In it, he ranted about the part of the game he took issue with.

Dave Portnoy described the officiating as the "most disgusting thing" and revealed days earlier that he had placed a $1 million bet on the Bills to win the Super Bowl in 2025.

Taking to X, Dave Portnoy vented his frustration over the officiating in the Bills versus Chiefs AFC Championship game, which ended in a 32-29 loss for the Bills.

He shared a nearly minute-long clip highlighting a controversial fourth-and-1 call in the fourth quarter, where the Bills were stopped short.

As the video played, Portnoy ranted about the spot after Buffalo's third-down completion, the spot on fourth down, and what he believed were egregious errors by the referees.

Fuming over the calls, Portnoy exclaimed, "This is the most disgusting thing. I'm not watching football ever again. I quit football. I quit."

In his caption, he doubled down on his decision, writing, "I'm quitting watching football," while also taking aim at NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

"There is no other way to teach @nflcommish a lesson. This is blatant cheating," Portnoy added, ending with the hashtag #nflrigged.

Some fans were quick to agree with Porrtnoy's view of the officiating in the comment section of his post.

One wrote, "The NFL doesn't even care if we know it's rigged. They'll still get millions of viewers."

A second fan commented, "As a lifelong NFL fan, I'm switching to college football next season. Where the refs don't protect dynasties, and the rules are still recognizable to the game I fell in love with."

Similarly, several other fans argued that Portnoy's review of the call was wrong.

An X netizen commented, "I love you, Dave, but put down the weed/booze and just stop trying to be a referee. It was reviewed, and the right call was made based on the football, not the player's body. Haters are going to hate."

Another fan remarked, "That fourth play was not a first down. Lmao, the ball was not even over the marker. His forward progress was stopped. Learn football."

Someone else wondered, "So the Chiefs winning 3 straight because of the refs? That's what y'all really trying to push?"

Due to the Bills losing the match, Portnoy lost a $1 million bet he had placed on them to win the Super Bowl.

In a video last week, he had announced that he made the wager as he was super confident about the Bills' chances.

To win the bet, the Bills needed to defeat the Chiefs in the AFC Championship and then go on to beat the Eagles in the Super Bowl. Had that happened, Portnoy stood to make a $5.5 million profit—more than five times his initial stake.

Notably, Portnoy's massive bets are not unusual. The Barstool Sports founder has a history of placing high-stakes wagers on high-profile games.

Over a week ago, Portnoy accused quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs of cheating during their 23-14 victory over the Houston Texans in the NFL Divisional Round.

He joined several NFL fans in criticizing Mahomes for his actions during a play in the fourth quarter when the Chiefs were leading 13-12.

According to the Daily Mail, Mahomes had run out of bounds on 2nd-and-goal but slowed down before stepping out, with Houston's Henry To'oTo'o in pursuit.

Upon catching up, To'oTo'o shoved Mahomes out of bounds, prompting Mahomes to raise his arms and fall to the ground, seemingly attempting to draw a penalty.

Following the incident, Portnoy had a very heated reaction to the Chiefs quarterback's behavior.

Taking to X, the Barstool owner labeled Mahomes' action as "flopping" and claimed it was damaging to the NFL star's reputation as a player.

He further accused Mahomes of "disgracing the game" by intentionally decelerating to provoke his opponent into making contact.