Sep 24, 2009 10:23 am US/Eastern
Blackouts A Growing Threat For NFL Teams
Jacksonville Jaguars have already had games blacked out
NEW YORK (CBS4) ―
For most football fans, the NFL represents the zenith of American football. It features the top players and coaches, and fills stadiums across the country. But, as the economy collapsed in the last year, for many fans, the cost of tickets, parking, and concessions have put going to a game in person out of reach. That's leading to less sellouts of games and when the game isn't sold out, local fans learn the hard way why some call the NFL the "No Fun League."
The NFL has a policy of blacking out any game from local television if the game isn't a "sellout." The rule says all games must be sold out 72 hours before kickoff. If it's not a sellout, no TV market within 75 miles of the stadium can show the game live.
Even with the economy struggling, the NFL is sticking to the blackout rule, which is angering fans in markets with especially bad teams like Detroit, Jacksonville, and Oakland. The NFL has been granting extensions for some teams as the 72 hour window was cut down to 48 hours for teams like Arizona, Cincinnati, and Oakland during week 1. Detroit and San Diego needed a similar extension for their week 2 battle with the Baltimore Ravens.
So far, the blackout policy is impacting only one team on a regular basis. The Jacksonville Jaguars, a poor team on the field, has seen its home games blacked out this season and will likely have all home games blacked out this season. The story is the same in Tampa, where the team was concerned some home games wouldn't sell out, again because of ticket prices and the franchise is fielding a bad team on the field.
Miami, while sitting at 0-2 in the early part of the season isn't concerned about any blackouts, at least right now. If the Fins don't begin to turn their season around, the fickleness of Dolphins fans might lead to a game being blacked out later in the season.
There were only 38 blackouts in the last 1,000 games played in the NFL before this season. But a study have shown that the teams and the local economy can generate almost as much, and sometimes even generate more money by allowing the game to be seen on television.
Lawmakers can step in and force the NFL to change the policy, primarily because the government wields the influence over antitrust law exemptions. Those exemptions allow the league to negotiate TV contracts as a cartel.
Congressional members have stepped in and threatened the antitrust exemption before. In 2007, the Patriots were one win away from a perfect regular season, but the game was going to be shown only on the NFL Network, which wasn't shown on many cable operators. The antitrust threat was issued and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell backed off only showing the game on the NFL Network and instead allowed CBS and NBC to air the game nationally.
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