Barstool Sports personality Bill Cotter, aka “Billy Football,” has spent the better part of the last seven years “joking around” on the internet.
Now the 25-year-old Republican wants to be a US congressman representing New York’s District 3 — the Queens and Long Island seat formerly held by the notorious George Santos.
“My sincerity should not be questioned,” Cotter told me. “I want to do the right thing. I want to make people proud … For the betterment of the district, our country and my generation, we need more young people to get a voice in the House.”
The political upstart has a lot of hurdles to cross, but Cotter points out that he has a good record when it comes to punching up.
“I’ve been in a real David versus Goliath [battle], when I fought Jose Canseco,” he said. “He was 100 pounds heavier than me. And I beat him.”
Back in 2021, Cotter went toe-to-toe with the scandal-plagued former MLB star in Barstool’s “Rough N Rowdy” pay-per-view boxing series, featuring amateur competitors. He knocked Canseco out in less than 20 seconds and walked away with $50,000 in prize money — $20,000 of which, Cotter said, he used to launch his campaign.
“[Canseco] underestimated me so badly that he was drinking beers the night before the fight. I had been training hard and eating well. I was in top shape,” said Cotter, who was a regular fixture on “Pardon My Take,” Barstool’s most popular podcast, and is now on the “Macrodosing” podcast.
The political pugilist is aiming to win the GOP primary on June 25, when he’ll face Mike LiPetri, who is backed by the Nassau County GOP. The winner will then run against Democrat incumbent Tom Suozzi, who won the seat in February after Congress expelled Santos over federal charges alleging he stole money from his campaign. (Santos pleaded not guilty to the charges.)
In the race, Cotter sees shades of his earlier bout against Conseco — saying neither LiPetri nor the Republican party are taking him seriously.
“I think when you’re drinking large amounts of institutional money, it does make you a little impaired in terms of thinking: ‘I’ve got the money, I’ve got the establishment behind me,'” said Cotter. “We have people making millions of dollars in Congress. Are they really serving their constituents?”
But he insists he is “serious” about his pivot into politics. Cotter said he’s driven by disillusionment with the migrant crisis, a backslide in law and order, ballooning inflation and grim economic prospects for young Americans.
The breaking point for Cotter was when the city built a migrant shelter over some of the soccer fields on Randall’s Island in August 2023. The 2,000-person complex has since been plagued by violence, including a fatal stabbing in January.
“How did a place that provided me with such great memories growing up change so quickly? It’s a place for competition,” said Cotter, who was born in Manhattan and raised in the Westchester suburb of North Salem.
“Now there’s a huge migrant camp, and you can’t drop your kid off to play a game and leave to grab a coffee. There is crime taking place less than a mile away from a park where kids are playing football, baseball, and it’s changed the atmosphere of the place.”
Cotter, whose paternal grandfather was an NYPD cop, said law enforcement officers have been treated poorly in New York and around the country, as have veterans.
He’s also concerned for his own generation — and how out of reach the American dream now seems.
He quoted the Zach Bryan song: “Burn Burn Burn”:
“I want a well-trained dog on a couple of acres. A kind, kind lady and a place to take her. Few good friends I can count on one of my hands.”
“[Bryan] is very popular across America. Good friend of mine actually,” he said of the Americana singer, who is dating Barstool’s “Brianna Chickenfry” LaPaglia. “I know he’s from Oklahoma. But we all want the same thing. People want to settle down, have a house, hopefully a family — but they’re paying rent, living with multiple roommates into their 30s.”
Cotter was an all-state football player and attended Williams College, where he studied political economics. He started interning at Barstool Sports at 18, and the rabid Jets fan has blogged about all realms of pigskin; last year, he even traveled to Africa with another Barstool employee to coach a football team in Uganda.
If Cotter wins, he said he will re-evaluate his role at Barstool — something he’s already discussed with Barstool founder Dave Portnoy.
Last week, Santos endorsed Cotter, who counts John F. Kennedy and Teddy Roosevelt amongst his political heroes.
As for Portnoy’s endorsement, Cotter said it’s not yet a slam dunk.
“Just like I’ll have to earn every vote in District 3, I’ll have to earn his support,” said Cotter. “Dave doesn’t like to support losers. He likes winners.”
