A collection of avid bowlers across the country has filed a class-action lawsuit against private equity–backed bowling giant Bowlero, accusing the company of a “multi-year anticompetitive scheme to consolidate bowling centers,” which has led to skyrocketing bowling prices, deteriorating lanes, and “the veritable destruction of the decades-old pastime of bowling in America,” according to court documents reviewed by the Lever.In 2024, the Lever exposed the wide-ranging impacts of the Bowlero takeover, which bowlers say has led to a decline in quality at many beloved local bowling haunts.The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Washington state federal court, charges Bowlero with violating federal antitrust law and state consumer protection laws as it bought up hundreds of bowling alleys around the country in its “quest to become the ‘Starbucks’ of bowling.”Along with damages, the suit asks the court to unwind Bowlero’s acquisitions of bowling centers and the Professional Bowling Association, the premier organization for bowling as a sport, and block further consolidation.Bowlero, which has been rebranding as Lucky Strike Entertainment, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Bowlero’s expansion was bankrolled by private equity, the opaque industry known for stripping its investments for parts. The suit claims the company saw the country’s long history of independent bowling alleys as a “fragmented market ripe for roll-up.”According to the lawsuit, Bowlero’s empire has grown from six locations in 2012 to nearly 350 today, amounting to roughly 35 percent of US bowling revenue. In some markets, the company reportedly now controls 95 percent of all bowling lanes. The company went public in 2021.By that point, Bowlero had also acquired the Professional Bowling Association, which includes thousands of members and hosts professional tournaments watched by millions of viewers every year. The lawsuit claims Bowlero CEO Thomas Shannon…
