The NFL is not just the most popular sport in the United States but also a tremendously lucrative business worth billions of dollars. Despite the growth of college football, the NBA, and other major American sports, the NFL remains dominant and sets the standard in the industry.
Each of the NFL’s 32 franchises, including the Houston Texans, operates as an independent entity within the league and bears responsibility for any legal issues the league faces. Recently, the NFL suffered a significant setback in an antitrust lawsuit concerning its Sunday Ticket streaming service, which was offered through DirecTV from 2011 to 2022. The jury awarded $4.7 billion in damages to residential consumers and $96 million to businesses, potentially tripling these amounts under federal antitrust laws. This could raise the NFL’s liability to a staggering $14.39 billion. The lawsuit involved 2.4 million residential subscribers and 48,000 businesses nationwide who subscribed to watch out-of-market games.
This outcome could mean substantial financial repercussions for NFL teams like the Texans and their fellow franchises. If the total damages escalate to $14.39 billion, each team would be accountable for approximately $450 million. While this is a considerable sum, NFL teams operate within billion-dollar businesses, and owners like the Texans’ Cal McNair, reportedly worth around $3 billion, should have the financial capacity to manage such expenses.
Certainly, handling half a billion dollars in debt is not ideal, but with the financial resources at their disposal, team owners are expected to be able to cover these costs and address the league’s long-standing legal issue effectively.
