EXCLUSIVE: Dave Portnoy Admits He Feared Being Hit With False Sexual Harassment Allegations Amid 'Call Her Daddy' Contract Showdown

According to Portnoy, he warned the pair they could face legal consequences if they attempted to leave Barstool before fulfilling the remainder of their contract.

"Okay," Portnoy recalled telling them. "You guys realize I'll sue you if you take the podcast to another network before your contract is out, right?"

Portnoy then claims Cooper told him the pair had discussed alleging they were sexually harassed while working at Barstool in an effort to break free from their contractual obligations.

According to the media mogul, he believed the allegation would have been designed to pressure the company into surrendering ownership of the Call Her Daddy intellectual property while allowing the hosts to move the podcast elsewhere.

Portnoy vehemently denied the allegation in the memoir, writing that Barstool had never been accused of inappropriate workplace conduct despite years of public criticism over its controversial brand of humor.

He further argued the accusation would have been particularly damaging because it came during a period when workplace misconduct allegations were dominating headlines.

Portnoy wrote that although he believed such claims were "patently untrue," he feared the company would have faced an uphill battle in the court of public opinion if they had been made.

He also questioned how such allegations could be made against Barstool's workplace culture, claiming neither Cooper nor Franklyn regularly worked from the company's office.

Elsewhere in the chapter, Portnoy alleges the negotiations ultimately centered on a contract dispute rather than workplace misconduct, claiming the podcast hosts were seeking to regain control of the show's future while negotiating an exit from Barstool.