Dave Portnoy and Dan “Big Cat” Katz, hosts of Barstool Sports, disclosed they turned down an offer of $10 million to attend an unspecified boxing match in Saudi Arabia, Katz said during a recent Barstool Yak episode. The two said the proposal would have covered both men and potentially Barstool, and they indicated they had previously sought as much as $15 million. They conceded they were not willing to travel for the offered price, ultimately declining the eight-figure offer.
Katz described the arrangement as a travel-heavy commitment for the two hosts and noted there was no clarity on which fight would have been involved. He recalled a phone conversation about a boxing event and said, “Give us like $15 million and we’ll do it,” while acknowledging that the other side offered $10 million and they said no. The disclosure came as the discussion touched on broader Saudi investments in sports and entertainment and the concept of sports washing, a term used to describe attempts to improve a country’s image through high-profile events amid other human rights concerns.
The conversation also reflected a wider pattern of Saudi-backed events spreading across sports and entertainment. Fury and Usyk have competed on Saudi soil, underscoring the Kingdom’s growing footprint in boxing and related media ventures, while LIV Golf has continued to receive substantial funding as it expands globally. The exchange occurred against a backdrop of other high-profile Saudi projects, including a September-October Riyadh Comedy Festival featuring Kevin Hart, Pete Davidson, Bill Burr and others, according to the event’s listings. Katz offered a nod to the festival and its organizers, saying, “credit to them.”
In addition to the comedy festival, Saudi Arabia is slated to host the Fanatics Flag Football Classic in Riyadh next March, with planned participation by athletes such as Tom Brady and Saquon Barkley, and WWE’s WrestleMania 43 remains scheduled for 2027 in the country. These endeavors illustrate the breadth of Saudi investments in entertainment, sports and pop culture, a trend that continues to attract attention and scrutiny amid debates over human rights and equity in global sports.
Katz stressed that the $10 million figure would not have necessarily been a direct payout to him or Portnoy; it could have flowed through Barstool. He did not elaborate on which boxing match would have been involved or the distribution of travel costs, but he maintained that the price offered did not meet their threshold. The exchange captures the tension in a climate where Saudi-backed sports deals are increasingly common, even as critics argue such arrangements amount to sports washing and attempts to manipulate perception through celebrity and spectacle.
The broader narrative surrounding these offers underscores how entertainment and sports platforms navigate the line between opportunity and scrutiny. While supporters point to expanded reach, tourism, and cross-cultural exchange, opponents argue that high-dollar engagements with Saudi-backed events can obscure larger concerns about governance and rights. As Saudi Arabia continues to calendar major sports and entertainment events in the coming years, observers will closely watch how participants, sponsors, and audiences weigh financial incentives against ethical considerations.
