Ninth Circuit Reinstates NFL 'Sunday Ticket' Liability Verdict and Orders New Trial on $4.7 Billion in Damages
A U.S. federal appeals court on October 30 reinstated a jury's verdict that the National Football League violated federal antitrust laws through its "Sunday Ticket" television distribution agreements, reversing a lower court decision that had thrown out a nearly $4.7 billion verdict against the league two years ago, Reuters reported. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, based in San Francisco, agreed, however, that the jury erred in calculating damages and ordered a new trial on how much the NFL should pay.
The class action, filed in 2015, accused the NFL and DIRECTV of restricting competition by requiring consumers and commercial establishments to purchase a single package to watch Sunday afternoon games unavailable through local CBS and Fox affiliates. DIRECTV carried Sunday Ticket for nearly three decades before the package moved to Google's YouTube in 2023.
Following a monthlong trial in 2024, a federal jury awarded approximately $4.6 billion to residential subscribers and another $96 million to commercial customers, including bars and restaurants. Under federal antitrust law, damages can be tripled once a verdict becomes an official judgment, which could have pushed the total above $14 billion. U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez subsequently overturned the verdict, ruling that economic experts retained by the plaintiffs had relied on unreliable assumptions and flawed calculations.
The three-judge Ninth Circuit panel ruled that the district judge improperly excluded expert testimony used by subscribers to establish that the NFL's television distribution arrangements resulted in higher subscription prices, and ordered the liability verdict reinstated. But the panel wrote that the jury "clearly awarded damages based on its improper consideration of the evidence rather than according to the district court's instructions," which warrants a new trial on damages. The case returns to the district court to reinstate the liability verdict and hold the new damages trial.
The NFL has yet to release a public comment on the ruling, according to reports. A new trial could result in a lower, similar, or higher final award, and the league also has the option of appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Source: GSM · USA
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：加州英格尔伍德的 SoFi 体育场，NFL 比赛场馆之一。Ron Reiring 摄，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, an NFL venue. Photo by Ron Reiring, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
