NFL Sunday Ticket Antitrust Trial: Did You Pay Too Much?

A class action lawsuit alleging NFL “Sunday Ticket” subscribers were forced to pay more than they should have due to an anticompetitive agreement is having its day in court.

On June 6, the trial for the $21 billion case kicked off in a California federal court. The trial is almost 10 years in the making. 

First filed in 2015, the lawsuit alleges the NFL broke antitrust law when it allowed DirecTV to exclusively sell the “Sunday Ticket” package of out-of-market Sunday afternoon games airing on CBS and Fox at what it says was an inflated price, while restricting competition, the Associated Press reports.

The plaintiffs argue that the impact of the NFL's actions was around $7 billion, which a court could triple for damages under federal law, if the company is found to have violated the law.

Fans vs. NFL Over Alleged "Sunday Ticket" Price Gouging

The plaintiffs allege subscribers were forced to pay inflated prices to watch their favorite NFL  teams play on Sunday afternoons.

Daniel Rascher, a sports economist at the University of San Francisco, testified for plaintiffs who claim the NFL conspired with CBS and Fox to reduce competition for their broadcasts.

Rascher testified that had the NFL chosen to partner with a cable TV provider, the Sunday Ticket package could have reached as many as 90 million potential customers. Instead, it was limited to DirecTV’s 13 million subscribers, PYMNTS reports. This exclusive agreement was designed to protect the ratings of CBS and Fox’s Sunday afternoon games, which are broadcast for free over the air, thereby enabling these networks to charge more for advertising slots, he said.

Lawyers for the NFL argued that the “Sunday Ticket” package is a premium product and an add-on for fans who don’t live in the same state as their favorite team, which is why it commands a higher price point. They say all games for local teams are available on broadcast networks.

Millions of Subscribers Overcharged?

Starting in 1994, the NFL began offering "Sunday Ticket" as an option for out-of-market fans who wanted to watch their home team, CBS reports. For example, a Chiefs fan living in New York City wouldn't have had many options to watch Kansas City play prior to 1994, but with the inception of "Sunday Ticket," that fan had a way to watch every game. 

DirecTV was the home of “NFL Sunday Ticket” from 1994 until 2022. Plaintiffs say, over this time, the NFL worked together with its network partners to inflate the price of "Sunday Ticket” to a rate that was unaffordable for most people.

The DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket class action lawsuit covers more than 2.45 million commercial and residential subscribers from 2012 to 2022. 

The trial could last up to three weeks, the Associated Press reports.

Case Details

• Lawsuit: In re: National Football League’s “Sunday Ticket” Antitrust Litigation
• Case Number: 2:15-mdl-02668
• Court: U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

Plaintiffs' Attorneys

• Marc M. Seltzer, Kalpana Srinivasan, Amanda Bonn, William C. Carmody, Seth Ard, Tyler Finn and Ian M. Gore (Susman Godfrey LLP)
• Scott Martin, Sathya S. Gosselin, Christopher L. Lebsock, Samuel Maida and Farhad Mirzadeh (Hausfeld LLP)
• Howard Langer, Edward Diver, Peter Leckman and Kevin Trainer (Langer Grogan & Diver PC)