‘Sunday Ticket’ lawsuit could land Lions with a hefty bill

The NFL suffered a major loss in court this week. A jury found that the league violated antitrust laws by selling its “Sunday Ticket” package exclusively on DirecTV and at an inflated price to preserve local viewership for games broadcast on FOX and CBS.

The total verdict imposes a $4.8 billion penalty on the NFL, split between the residential class ($4.696 billion) and the commercial class ($97 million; bars, restaurants, etc.). Under antitrust law, the $4.696 billion amount is tripled to $14.088 billion.

The NFL is of course fighting the verdict. A hearing on post-trial motions is scheduled for July 31 under Judge Philip Gutierrez. The damages could be reduced or the entire verdict could be thrown out. Overall, the legal process is not over yet as the NFL fights for a sizable (to put it mildly) payout.

One way the NFL’s verdict, if it stands, could become more vindicated is by raising the price of the “Sunday Ticket,” which is already available on YouTube TV.

When it comes to television transactions, the NFL operates equally within one business unit in terms of revenue. So any “Sunday ticket” verdict, if there is one and whatever it may be, will also be split between the 32 teams.

As we know, and as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk emphasizes, no NFL team owner will be immediately plunged into poverty if he has to pay his share of the full, hefty judgment in the “Sunday Ticket” case.

But that would still be a lot of money. Florio did the math, and using the housing portion of the verdict ($14.088 billion, tripled) it comes to $440.25 million per team. For comparison, this year’s salary cap is $255.4 million per team.

It seems unlikely that the full verdict in the Sunday Ticket damages case against the NFL will be upheld, and given his past comments, Gutierrez could throw out the entire case on July 31. But if he proves to be maintained in his current form, we know what it will cost the Lions and every other team.