Lucky Strike Entertainment has been accused of building an illegal bowling monopoly by rolling up hundreds of bowling alleys across the U.S., driving up prices and degrading the customer experience through what plaintiffs call “illegally acquired scale.”
The lawsuit, first reported on by Lever and filed Wednesday in Washington federal court, portrays the company as a “Wall Street goliath” that transformed bowling from an affordable American pastime into an overpriced business focused on the financial bottom line instead of customer experience. In some cases, the price to bowl at Lucky Strike–owned alleys has tripled in recent years, the lawsuit says.
It says the rise of the company, formerly known as Bowlero, has been “fueled by repeated hedge fund and private equity investment on the road to going public.” Lucky Strike went public via a special purpose acquisition company merger in 2021.
The proposed nationwide class action, lodged by a group of 11 named plaintiffs, alleges Lucky Strike used an aggressive acquisition strategy to become the dominant force in American bowling. It says the company currently controls about 35% of U.S. bowling revenue and more than 350 “bowling centers” across North America. Its next closest competitors are Main Event, which operates 64 centers, and Round1 Bowling, which operates 56.
