GameStop, the largest retailer dedicated to videogames, is reportedly shutting down hundreds of stores in the United States.
The reports started appearing on social media and were quickly conflated into one very long list on the 'GameStop Closing List' blog, which reckons there are at least 410 GameStop stores confirmed to be closing and another 11 reported but as of yet unconfirmed.
This is only the latest round of closures for the retailer headquartered in Grapevine, Texas. In the annual 10-K SEC filing issued in February 2025, the company stated:
We have also initiated a comprehensive store portfolio optimization review which involves identifying stores for closure based on many factors, including an evaluation of current market conditions and individual store performance. This review, among other things, resulted in the closure of 590 stores in the United States in fiscal 2024. While this review is ongoing and a specific set of stores has not been identified for closure, we anticipate closing a significant number of additional stores in fiscal 2025.
The employees being let go are understandably furious, especially since the latest wave of cuts occurred shortly after another SEC filing was issued this Wednesday, January 7, when GameStop announced a massive performance-based stock option for its current CEO, Ryan Cohen. Cohen, who assumed the role on September 28, 2023, is the largest individual shareholder and stands to gain up to $35 billion (yes, you read that right), albeit with a massive caveat: the company’s market capitalization would have to grow to $100 billion and the company would need to achieve $10 billion in Cumulative Performance EBITDA.
Considering that GameStop's current market capitalization as of yesterday's closing was $9.51 billion, Cohen would have to somehow stage a 10-fold market capitalization growth to receive his full bonus. Granted, there is a precedent: in January 2021, a short squeeze caused the company's stock to surge significantly, briefly reaching an astounding pre-market value of $500 per share on January 28, almost thirty times the share's valuation earlier that month. Even then, though, the market cap only reached $33.7 billion, still quite far from that $100 billion threshold required by Cohen's bonus. And with the constant shift toward digital games, it's hard to imagine how the company could achieve such a high valuation.
There are, however, nine vesting tranches, the first of which is definitely more achievable for the executive.
| Tranche | % of Award | Market Cap Hurdle | Cumulative Performance EBITDA Hurdle |
| 1 | 10% | $20 Billion | $2.0 Billion |
| 2 | 10% | $30 Billion | $3.0 Billion |
| 3 | 10% | $40 Billion | $4.0 Billion |
| 4 | 10% | $50 Billion | $5.0 Billion |
| 5 | 10% | $60 Billion | $6.0 Billion |
| 6 | 10% | $70 Billion | $7.0 Billion |
| 7 | 10% | $80 Billion | $8.0 Billion |
| 8 | 15% | $90 Billion | $9.0 Billion |
| 9 | 15% | $100 Billion | $10.0 Billion |
By the way, GameStop is also restructuring its operations in other countries. They sold their Italian operations, closed down in Germany, Ireland, Switzerland, and Austria, and shared their intent to sell the Canadian branch. Now, according to RNZ, they might be looking to close in New Zealand, too, although the proposal is apparently 'not final'. They currently have 38 stores there.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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