The NFL is facing the prospect of having to pay more than $4 billion in damages from a class-action lawsuit loss over its “Sunday Ticket” package. It’s all part of the process, according to Roger Goodell.
The NFL commissioner downplayed the league’s concerns about the lawsuit in a CNBC interview on Thursday, saying his office still feels “very strongly” about its position as it attempts to appeal away the 10-figure payout:
“We obviously disagree with the jury verdict and we are committed, obviously, to following the legal process. It’s a long process. We’re aware of that, but we feel very strongly about our position, our policies, particularly on media, that we make our sport available to the broadest possible audience.
“Sunday Ticket is just a complementary product. We’re committed to following the litigation all the way and making sure that we get this right.”
The NFL’s potential bill, as ordered by a federal jury, consists of $4.7 billion in residential class damages and $96 million in commercial class damages to the plaintiffs representing the subscribers of “NFL Sunday Ticket.” The quick math with those numbers works out to nearly $150 million per team.
The lawsuit claimed the NFL, its teams and collection of network partners violated antitrust rules by working together to sell the TV package at an inflated price. It was first filed in 2015 on behalf of San Francisco’s Mucky Duck sports bar and originally sought $7 billion in damages.
“NFL Sunday Ticket” cost $349 last year on YouTubeTV and $294 in 2022, its final season on DirecTV.
The NFL was quick to confirm it would appeal the decision, calling the damages “excessive and unreasonable.” Given how long this lawsuit took to reach a verdict and how long a billion-dollar appeals process can take, this legal saga could easily take more than a decade to fully resolve.
