Federal Judge Overturns $4.7 Billion Verdict Against NFL in Antitrust Case

by Nicholas Edwards · 01/08/2024

In a stunning twist, a federal judge voids a $4.7 billion verdict against the NFL, ruling that expert testimony should have been excluded. Learn more about the antitrust case and its implications.

Paris, Bollywoodfever: In a stunning twist, a federal judge has overturned a $4.7 billion verdict against the National Football League (NFL), whose broadcast model was found in a jury trial to have violated antitrust laws.

U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez granted the NFL’s bid to void the verdict, finding that some of the testimony from experts who testified in the trial should have been excluded. Without that testimony, he concluded that “no reasonable jury could have found class-wide injury or damages.”

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The 8-year-old legal battle centered on allegations that the league and its 32 teams conspired in violation of antitrust laws to allow the NFL to reach exclusive deals with broadcast partners for the right to air out-of-market games. If the verdict stood, the NFL faced potential losses nearing $15 billion since damages in antitrust cases can be trebled. It might also have been forced to change its broadcast model.

In June, a jury agreed with fans who claimed they overpaid for Sunday Ticket. Bids to overturn jury verdicts through so-called motions for judgment as a matter of law are rarely granted, making this case particularly notable.

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