LOS ANGELES (NEWSnet/AP) — The National Football League has been found guilty of violating antitrust laws in its distribution of out-of-market games through its premium subscription service, Sunday Ticket.

A U.S. District Court jury awarded residential and commercial subscribers nearly $4.8 billion in damages.

The league violated antitrust laws by selling Sunday Ticket exclusively on DirecTV at an inflated price. By offering the service through only one distributor and at a high price, it limited the subscriber base and addressed CBS and Fox’s concerns about maintaining local viewership while the NFL received money for the broadcast rights.

Who were the plaintiffs?

The class action lawsuit covered more than 2.4 million individual subscribers and 48,000 businesses, primarily bars and restaurants, that purchased NFL Sunday Tickets between June 17, 2011, and February 7, 2023.


It awards $4.7 billion to residential subscribers and $96 million to businesses. Because the compensation is The NFL could be liable for up to $14.39 billion under federal antitrust law if a settlement is not reached or the fine is not reduced. It would be split evenly among the 32 teams. That means each team could pay as much as $449.6 million.

Will there be immediate changes?


Changes to “Sunday Ticket,” or how the NFL broadcasts its Sunday afternoon games, will be put on hold until the appeal is complete. It may consider offering team-by-team or week-by-week packages, along with a discounted price.


Judge Philip S. Gutierrez Gutierrez is scheduled to hear post-trial motions on July 31. This will include the NFL’s request for a ruling in the league’s favor because the judge found that the plaintiffs failed to prove their case.

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