Inside the ‘NFL Sunday Ticket’ Verdict: What Happened and What’s Next

The world of professional football, with all its glitzy touchdowns and roaring crowds, has recently found itself in a rather unglamorous courtroom battle. The NFL, the undisputed titan of American sports, has been found guilty of violating antitrust laws in its distribution of out-of-market Sunday afternoon games through its “Sunday Ticket” premium subscription service. In a case that has captured the attention of more than just sports fans, the ramifications of this ruling could potentially cost the league a staggering $14.39 billion in damages.

At the heart of the controversy is the NFL’s decision to offer the “Sunday Ticket” service exclusively through one distributor, at a premium price. While this arrangement lined the pockets of the league and appeased CBS and Fox by preserving local ratings, it also limited the subscriber base, effectively locking out countless fans who couldn’t afford or access the service. Despite the NFL pulling out the big guns, with Commissioner Roger Goodell and Dallas Cowboys’ head honcho Jerry Jones taking the stand, their testimonies did little to sway the judicial gavel.

This class action lawsuit wasn’t just a minor skirmish; it encompassed over 2.4 million residential subscribers and around 48,000 businesses such as bars and restaurants, who purchased the “NFL Sunday Ticket” from mid-2011 to early 2023. Given the trebling of damages under federal antitrust laws, the NFL finds itself staring down a potential financial black hole, unless they reach a settlement or manage to reduce the figure substantially. On the lower end of the spectrum, the damages could be as “modest” as $332 million, under a model known somewhat affectionately as the “NFL Tax.”

Changes to the “Sunday Ticket” package or the methods of broadcasting Sunday afternoon games will be postponed until all appeals are exhausted. Interestingly, ESPN had proposed offering the “Sunday Ticket” for a more wallet-friendly $70 per season back in 2022, complete with team-by-team packages. This proposal, however, was rebuffed by the NFL, which later opted to go with YouTube TV. One can’t help but ponder if team-by-team packages had been available all along, would one of the key class members have ever joined the lawsuit? College football had to adapt its broadcasting rights in the landmark 1984 Supreme Court case, so why not the NFL?

This legal saga has been anything but straightforward. U.S. District Judge Beverly Reid O’Connell initially dismissed the lawsuit in 2017, ruling in favor of the NFL. But the narrative took a turn in 2019 when the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the case. Lead attorney Bill Carmody’s closing arguments shed light on an intriguing April 2017 NFL memo, revealing that the league had considered a world without “Sunday Ticket,” where out-of-market games not shown on Fox or CBS would be aired on cable channels. Despite Judge Philip S. Gutierrez expressing his frustrations with the plaintiffs’ attorneys midway through the trial, Carmody’s clarity in closing arguments evidently made an impact.

The NFL might remain the juggernaut of American sports, with immense influence and staggering revenue streams, but its courtroom track record, especially in Los Angeles, leaves much to be desired. In the wake of this legal defeat, the league faces not just a financial reckoning but perhaps a call to rethink how it brings America’s favorite pastime to its legion of fans.