Is Alix Earle'sHot MessPodcast Heading to Barstool Sports? What Dave Portnoy's Cryptic Post Really Means

Mar. 15, 2025

Dave Portnoy and Alix Earle.Photo:Mike Coppola/Getty; TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic

Mike Coppola/Getty; TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic

IsAlix Earle’sHot Messpodcastheading toBarstool Sports?

Set to “Circle of Life” from Disney’sThe Lion King, he wrote in the caption, “You can stop tagging me. I know what needs to be done 😘.”

Though fans immediately theorized whether the influencer and Barstool Sports founder were set to collaborate, he later shut down rumors, clarifying his post was meant to be a joke.

“I didn’t call her. I just thought it was funny,” he wrote.

Portnoy’s post seemed to be a reference to Cooper’sTikTokin December 2024 right before she announced that Grace O’Malley would be joining Unwell Network afterher departure from Barstool Sports. He also used Cooper’s exact caption for his post as well.

PEOPLE reached out to Portnoy’s representative for additional comment.

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The cryptic Instagram post comes afterVarietyreported on Feb. 25 that theUnwell Network dropped Earle’sHot Messpodcast. She was one of the first talents to be signed with the network when it launched in August 2023.

The outlet reported that the network renounced all rights to Earle’s podcast and that SiriusXM will no longer sell ads for the show. Earle is free to explore other opportunities for her podcast.

Alex Cooper and Alix Earle.Gotham/GC Images

Gotham/GC Images

PEOPLE previously reached out to Earle and Cooper’s representatives for comment.

The move comes after fan speculation around a potential feud between Cooper and Earle ramped up when Earle was absent from Unwell’s Super Bowl party in New Orleans in early February.

Earle instead posted several TikToks spending time with her friends and her boyfriendBraxton Berriosduring the2025 Super Bowl weekend.

source: people.com