The head of the National Football League has received a congressional invitation to testify as federal lawmakers examine the organization’s television contracts and its growing use of subscription-based streaming platforms for game broadcasts.
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, delivered a letter on Monday to the commissioner requesting his participation in a June 10 hearing focused on the league’s media agreements and their adherence to the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961.
This decades-old legislation provides professional sports organizations with specific antitrust protections, enabling them to combine their broadcasting rights and conduct negotiations collectively while shielding them from certain legal challenges.
However, the statute’s coverage extends solely to traditional broadcast television. Previous court decisions have determined that cable, satellite, and streaming platforms fall outside its scope. Lawmakers from both parties have expressed support for modernizing the legislation, with president Donald Trump joining those criticizing the NFL’s movement toward streaming services.
Jordan’s correspondence states that the upcoming hearing will “examine the extent to which the antitrust exemption created by the SBA has been used by the professional sports leagues to harm consumers and whether potential legislative remedies may be needed to address that harm.”
A league representative has not yet provided a response regarding the congressional letter.
This congressional action coincides with an ongoing Justice Department investigation into possible anticompetitive behavior by the NFL. When the inquiry became public in April, a government source not permitted to speak publicly about active investigations described it as being “about affordability for consumers and creating an even playing field for providers.”
Earlier this year in March, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, contacted both the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission requesting they examine whether the league’s content distribution methods align with the 1961 legislation. The FTC has also solicited public input regarding the migration of live sporting events from traditional television to streaming platforms.
League officials maintain that 87% of their games remain accessible through free television, noting that contests shown exclusively on cable or streaming remain available through over-the-air broadcasts in the home regions of participating teams.
The organization maintains broadcasting and streaming partnerships with CBS/Paramount+, NBC/Peacock, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+, Fox, NFL Network, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and YouTube TV. Thursday evening games transitioned to Prime Video in 2022, with the league subsequently moving playoff wild-card contests, Christmas Day matchups, and a Black Friday game to streaming services.
During the upcoming season, Netflix will broadcast an opening-week matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams from Melbourne, Australia, along with a Green Bay Packers-Rams game scheduled for the day before Thanksgiving.
