The NFL scored a huge victory in court last week when U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez overturned the $4.7 billion verdict against the league in the case with NFL Sunday Ticket.
A jury in Los Angeles ruled earlier this summer that the league had violated federal antitrust laws by selling its Sunday Ticket package only on DirectTV at an inflated price.
However, the NFL Sunday Ticket verdict had been in doubt after U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez, who oversaw the case, stated last week that the jury did not follow his instructions in determining damages, according to Courthouse News.
The jury found the NFL liable for more than $4.6 billion in damages, but Judge Philip Gutierrez decided to overturn the verdict against the league that was handed out back in June.
In his ruling, Gutierrez wrote that “the jury’s damages awards were not based on the ‘evidence and reasonable inferences’ but instead were more akin to ‘guesswork or speculation,'” according to Front Office Sports.
The NFL put out the following statement after the initial verdict:
“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.”
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The class-action lawsuit was brought against the NFL over the league allegedly violating antitrust laws restricting competition in an effort to protect its deals with Fox and CBS for Sunday afternoon games each season.
For years, DirectTV had Sunday Ticket exclusively, which ran from 1994 to 2022, until YouTube TV took over before the 2023 season.
U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez Shakes Up The NFL Sunday Ticket Case Even Further
U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez granted the NFL’s bid to void the $4.7 billion verdict against them in regards to the NFL Sunday Ticket
The court is expected to grant the NFL a new trial.
Once that happens, however, Judge Philip Gutierrez will not be there.
In October, he plans to retire.
“On October 15, 2024, I intend to retire from regular active service,” Gutierrez wrote in a January letter to President Joe Biden. “It is my intention to continue to render substantial judicial service as a senior judge,” per Pro Football Talk.
