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Cancel Me If You Can by Dave Portnoy Review: An Unfiltered Memoir From El Presidente
Cancel Me If You Can is Dave Portnoy's account of building Barstool Sports from a four-page Boston broadsheet into a multi-million-dollar media empire — an instant #1 New York Times bestseller and #1 Publishers Weekly bestseller that covers the hard work, luck, toxic relationships, and political firestorms behind his rise. This review is based on publisher materials and published commentary from named sources, not hands-on reading.
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Best for
Existing Barstool Sports fans and readers already invested in Portnoy's public persona who want his unfiltered, first-person account of building a polarizing media empire and surviving sustained attempts to cancel him.
Worth it if
You want a candid, name-naming entrepreneurial memoir that goes beyond a sanitized success story — covering luck, toxic relationships, and culture-war terrain — written in the same confrontational voice that built Barstool's audience.
Skip if
You're looking for a journalistically balanced or critically distanced account of Barstool Sports' rise; this is entirely Portnoy's own version of events, with no external counterweight.
What readers & critics say
The book debuted as an instant #1 New York Times and #1 Publishers Weekly bestseller, per Simon & Schuster's publisher page, reflecting Portnoy's broad pre-existing fanbase. Critical reception has been sharply divided: NPR's Book of the Day featured Portnoy discussing the memoir's political dimensions with Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep, while Slate characterized the book as written "with maximum disdain for its reader" and as an attempt to control the narrative around long-running controversies, and The Epoch Times offered a more favorable read, singling out specific segments — including the Deflategate coverage — as highlights of the book's best material.
“Written with maximum disdain for its reader — Portnoy details a media empire built on anything guys discuss at a sports bar.”
— Slate“He writes about building a media empire — but also about his role as a political lightning rod.”
— NPR4.7from 609 Amazon ratings— reader ratings, not a LuvemBooks score
In This Review
- What Works & What Doesn't
- What the Book Actually Is and Does
- The Origin Story at Its Core
- Political Lightning Rod and Cultural Flashpoint
- Strengths: Voice, Candor, and Scope
- Who It's For — and Who It Isn't
What Works & What Doesn't
What Works
- An instant #1 New York Times bestseller and #1 Publishers Weekly bestseller, reflecting broad pre-publication demand
- Goes beyond a standard entrepreneurial origin story to address Portnoy's role as a political lightning rod, per Critics of the Day coverage
- Covers specific, named turning points — including the fallout with Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy — rather than staying at a vague, sanitized level of detail
- Written in the same unfiltered voice that built Barstool's audience, delivering tonal consistency for existing fans
- Addresses candid acknowledgments of luck and toxic relationships alongside the success narrative, avoiding pure self-congratulation
What Doesn't
- The memoir is written entirely from Portnoy's own perspective, with no external or journalistic counterbalance — readers seeking a critical distance from the subject will not find it here
- Portnoy's polarizing public profile means the book's reception will be sharply divided along pre-existing cultural and political lines, limiting its crossover appeal
- The publisher's own framing resists easy categorization ('not a memoir or a business book'), which may frustrate readers who come in with specific expectations of genre or structure
A polarizing but chart-topping memoir, Cancel Me If You Can arrived as an instant #1 New York Times bestseller and #1 Publishers Weekly bestseller — figures that reflect the outsized cultural footprint of its subject.
What the Book Actually Is and Does
Cancel Me If You Can is a memoir by Dave Portnoy, founder of Barstool Sports and known to his audience as "El Presidente." Published by Gallery Books in June 2026, the book traces Portnoy's trajectory from a self-described gambler betting on himself to the head of one of digital media's most talked-about companies. The publisher describes it in pointed terms: "This isn't a memoir or a business book — it's another bet on himself." In practice, the book functions as both: it reconstructs the origin story of Barstool Sports — which began in 2004 as a four-page broadsheet Portnoy distributed across Boston — while also reckoning with what it cost him to keep it alive against sustained public and institutional pressure to shut him down.
“This isn't a memoir or a business book — it's another bet on himself.”
The Origin Story at Its Core
The central argument of the book, as laid out in publisher materials, is that Barstool succeeded because it filled a gap that mainstream sports media had ignored. The premise Portnoy identified early was straightforward: not every sports fan wanted polished takes from suited anchors on SportsCenter. There was an audience for something local, raw, and written in the voice of a regular sports bar regular. The memoir details how that instinct became an empire — covering the hard work, the timing, the luck, and, by Portnoy's own account, the "poisonous relationships behind the curtain" that threatened to derail it all. These are not abstract business lessons; the book names names and reconstructs specific turning points, including Portnoy's highly publicized falling-out with Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy.
Political Lightning Rod and Cultural Flashpoint
NPR's Book of the Day featured a conversation between Portnoy and Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep, in which Portnoy addressed his role not just as a media entrepreneur but as a political lightning rod. That interview surfaced concerns Portnoy himself raises in the book: his popularity among young men, and his stated anxieties about antisemitism and democratic socialism — topics that push Cancel Me If You Can beyond straightforward entrepreneurial storytelling into the culture-war terrain Portnoy has long occupied. The memoir's title, of course, is itself a direct challenge to the cancel culture debates that have surrounded Portnoy throughout the past decade.
Interior page introducing the publication with founder photo, dogs, and welcome message from the editor.
Strengths: Voice, Candor, and Scope
The verified publisher materials consistently foreground Portnoy's "unfiltered style" and "bold, authentic voice" as defining features of the book. For readers already drawn to Barstool's tone — confrontational, self-aware, unapologetic — the memoir is structured to deliver exactly that register at book length. Where celebrity business memoirs often sand down the messy edges, this one, per its own framing, leans into them: the timing that could have gone wrong, the luck that didn't, and the relationships that did. That candor about failure and contingency, alongside the success story, gives the book a texture distinct from the standard entrepreneurial hagiography.
Who It's For — and Who It Isn't
Portnoy is a figure who generates strong reactions, and the memoir makes no effort to soften that. Readers already in the Barstool ecosystem — followers of the brand's humor, sports coverage, and pop culture commentary — will find the book written directly for them, in a voice they already know. Those who have followed the controversies surrounding Portnoy over the years will encounter his own account of those events, presented entirely from his vantage point. Readers seeking a neutral or journalistically distanced account of Barstool Sports' rise will need to look elsewhere; this is, by design, one man's unmediated version of his own story. Whether that constitutes a strength or a limitation depends entirely on what the reader is looking for.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cancel Me If You Can worth reading?
According to the review, the answer depends heavily on who is asking. Readers already in the Barstool ecosystem will find a book written directly for them in a voice they already know, while those seeking a neutral or journalistically distanced account of Barstool Sports' rise will need to look elsewhere. The review notes that the book's candor about failure, luck, and messy relationships gives it a texture distinct from standard entrepreneurial hagiography.
Who is the target audience for this book?
The review identifies the primary audience as followers of Barstool Sports and its brand of confrontational, self-aware, unapologetic humor, sports coverage, and pop culture commentary. Those who have followed the controversies surrounding Dave Portnoy over the years will also find his own account of those events, presented entirely from his vantage point. Readers looking for a balanced or third-party perspective on Barstool's rise are not the intended audience.
What kind of book is this book — memoir or business book?
The review notes that the publisher itself resists easy categorization, describing it as neither a memoir nor a business book but rather 'another bet on himself.' In practice, the review observes that it functions as both: it reconstructs the origin story of Barstool Sports while also reckoning with the personal and institutional pressures Portnoy faced to keep it alive.
What is the central argument or thesis of the book?
The review explains that the book's central argument is that Barstool Sports succeeded because it filled a gap mainstream sports media had ignored. Portnoy identified an audience that did not want polished takes from suited anchors on SportsCenter, but instead wanted something local, raw, and written in the voice of a regular sports bar regular. The memoir traces how that instinct became an empire.
How did Barstool Sports start, according to the book?
The review details that Barstool Sports began in 2004 as a four-page broadsheet that Portnoy distributed across Boston. From those humble origins, the memoir traces the company's growth into one of digital media's most talked-about companies, covering the hard work, timing, luck, and difficult relationships along the way.
Does the book address the controversies surrounding Dave Portnoy?
Yes, the review confirms that the book directly engages with the controversies that have surrounded Portnoy throughout the past decade, including the cancel culture debates that inspired the title itself. However, the review cautions that these events are presented entirely from Portnoy's own vantage point, with no journalistic distance or neutral framing.
What is the writing style and tone of this book?
The review highlights Portnoy's unfiltered style and bold, authentic voice as defining features of the book, consistent with the tone Barstool Sports fans already know. The register is described as confrontational, self-aware, and unapologetic, and the book is structured to deliver that voice at full book length rather than softening it for a broader audience.
Does the book name specific people involved in Barstool's controversies?
The review confirms that the book names names and reconstructs specific turning points, rather than keeping things abstract. One example specifically cited is Portnoy's highly publicized falling-out with Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy, which the review identifies as among the key moments the memoir addresses directly.
What role does Alex Cooper play in the book?
The review mentions Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy as one of the named figures in the memoir, specifically in the context of Portnoy's highly publicized falling-out with her. The book reconstructs this as one of the specific turning points in Barstool's story, part of what Portnoy describes as the poisonous relationships behind the curtain that threatened to derail the company.
Does the book go beyond sports and business into political territory?
Yes, the review notes that Cancel Me If You Can pushes beyond straightforward entrepreneurial storytelling into the culture-war terrain Portnoy has long occupied. Portnoy addresses his role as a political lightning rod, and the book raises his stated anxieties about antisemitism and democratic socialism, topics surfaced in part through his NPR Morning Edition interview with host Steve Inskeep.
Sources & Further Reading
The key facts and claims in this review are grounded in the retrieved, verified sources listed below.
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premierecollectibles.com
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booksamillion.com
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bookmarks.reviews
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tpl.bibliocommons.com
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