Cowboys potentially left with massive bill after NFL Sunday Ticket verdict
Cowboys potentially left with massive bill after NFL Sunday Ticket verdict
The NFL Sunday Ticket service has long been an issue for fans because of its lack of flexibility and hefty price. But that could change after a verdict came down in a lawsuit against the league that may lead to the Dallas Cowboys and the other 31 teams paying a massive bill.
Per ESPN, a jury of eight has decided that the league violated federal antitrust laws with the subscription service because it only offered NFL Sunday Ticket through DirecTV, and at an inflated price.
As a result, a total of $4.8 million in damages was awarded. $4.7 billion of that will go to residential buyers and $96 million to commercial buyers. No damages will be paid until the appeal process plays out, though, and the NFL fully intends on going that route. Changes to the service will be stayed, also.
"We are disappointed with the jury's verdict today in the NFL Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit. We continue to believe that our media distribution strategy, which features all NFL games broadcast on free over-the-air television in the markets of the participating teams and national distribution of our most popular games, supplemented by many additional choices including RedZone, Sunday Ticket and NFL+, is by far the most fan friendly distribution model in all of sports and entertainment," the league said.
"We will certainly contest this decision as we believe that the class action claims in this case are baseless and without merit. We thank the jury for their time and service and for the guidance and oversight from Judge [Philip] Gutierrez throughout the trial."
Along with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones testified during the trial.
If the decision holds up, the cost of the damages will be spread out across all 32 teams. That $4.8 billion number has the potential to go up, though, because damages can be tripled under federal antitrust laws.
If so, that would equate to $14.39 billion, leaving each team to pay $449.6 million.