NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is pictured arriving at the federal courthouse in Los Angeles on June 17, 2024.
Damian Dovarganes/AP/Associated Press
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Damian Dovarganes/AP/Associated Press
LOS ANGELES – A U.S. District Court jury on Thursday ordered the NFL to pay nearly $4.8 billion in damages after finding it violated antitrust laws by distributing Sunday afternoon off-field games through a premium subscription service.
The jury awarded $4.7 billion in residential damages and $96 million in commercial damages. With losses potentially tripling under federal antitrust law, the NFL could end up with a liability of $14.39 billion.
The lawsuit involves 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses in the United States who purchased off-market game packages on DirecTV for the 2011 to 2022 seasons. The lawsuit claims the league violated antitrust laws by selling packages of Sunday games at inflated prices. Subscribers also said the league limited competition by offering “Sunday Ticket” only through satellite providers.
The NFL said it would appeal the verdict. The appeal will go to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and then possibly to the Supreme Court.
If the NFL ultimately pays compensation, each of the 32 teams could lose approximately $449.6 million.
“We are disappointed with today’s jury verdict in the NFL Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit,” the league said in a statement. “We continue to believe in our media distribution strategy, which includes free wireless for all NFL games in participating team markets.” Broadcast on television, as well as national distribution of our most popular games, complemented by a host of other options including RedZone, Sunday Ticket and NFL+ is by far the most fan-friendly distribution model in all of sports and entertainment.
“We will certainly challenge this decision because we believe the class action claims in this case are baseless and without merit.”
The trial lasted three weeks and featured testimony from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
“Justice has been served. The verdict upholds consumer protections for our class. This is a great day for consumers,” said Bill Carmody, attorney for the plaintiffs.
In his closing remarks, Carmody showed an April 2017 memo from the NFL that showed the league was exploring a world without “Sunday Ticket” in 2017, in which cable channels would air weekly shows not aired by Fox or CBS. Off-site game this afternoon.
The jury of five men and three women deliberated for nearly five hours before reaching its decision.
Judge Philip S. Gutierrez is scheduled to hear post-trial motions on July 31, including the NFL asking him to rule in favor of the league because the judge believes the plaintiffs have not proven their case.
Payment of compensation, any changes to the “Sunday Ticket” package and/or the format of the NFL’s Sunday afternoon games will be put on hold until all appeals are concluded.
The league maintains that it has the right to sell “Sunday Ticket” under broadcasting’s antitrust exemption. This only covers over-the-air broadcasts, not pay television, the plaintiffs said.
Other professional sports leagues are also looking at the case as they also offer out-of-market packages. But one major difference is that the MLB, NBA and NHL sell their packages on multiple distributors and share the revenue from each subscriber, rather than collecting royalties directly.
DirecTV has had “Sunday Ticket” from its inception in 1994 until 2022.
The lawsuit was originally filed by San Francisco’s Mucky Duck sports bar in 2015 but was dismissed in 2017. Gutierrez ruled last year that the case could proceed as a class action lawsuit.
