Congress asks Roger Goodell to testify about NFL’s broadcast dealsDan MurphyJun 1, 2026, 05:00 PM ETClose
- Dan Murphy is a reporter on ESPN’s investigative and enterprise team. Reach him at daniel.murphy@espn.com.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been summoned by Congress to testify about the league’s broadcast contracts and whether they are harming American consumers, according to a letter obtained by ESPN.
Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, wrote to Goodell on Monday to invite the commissioner to take part in a committee hearing June 10. The committee plans to discuss whether updated laws are needed to regulate how pro sports leagues negotiate their TV deals.
Jordan’s letter notes the media landscape has changed considerably since 1961, when Congress granted several pro sports leagues a limited antitrust exemption to allow them to negotiate their TV deals in large groups as part of the Sports Broadcasting Act. Lawmakers and fans have expressed growing concerns about how many of those leagues are now selling some of their games to a wide variety of companies, which makes it harder and more expensive for fans to watch.
“Back when the Sports Broadcast Act was passed, the promise was you’ll get to watch every one of your team’s games for free,” Jordan told ESPN. “Things have changed dramatically since 1961.”
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In April, the Department of Justice launched an investigation into the NFL’s use of the Sports Broadcasting Act, which was written before cable or any type of streaming service existed and therefore does not explicitly address whether the exemption from antitrust law applies to anything other than over-the-air broadcast deals. Courts have ruled in the past that the exemption does not apply to other media such as cable, satellite and streaming services.
“The idea they can collude when negotiating a deal with a cable company or Amazon Prime is a very fair question to ask and explore,” Jordan reported.
Goodell defended the NFL’s distribution strategy and its efforts to make games available to the widest possible audience in an interview with ESPN ahead of the NFL draft in late April.
“We’ve been surviving and thriving on the basis of being available to the broadest audience,” Goodell reported.
The NFL currently has television contracts with ESPN/ABC, NBC Sports, CBS Sports, Prime Video and Netflix to air its games. Subscriptions are required to watch “Monday Night Football” games on ESPN that aren’t simulcast on ABC, “Thursday Night Football” and the Black Friday game on Prime Video, and Christmas games on Netflix. Some international games also air on NFL Network, which is owned by ESPN. Select postseason games also require subscriptions. The NFL has also awarded select games to ESPN+ and Peacock in the past.
All games, however, air free on the local stations in the broadcast markets of the teams playing.
“The NFL’s media distribution model is the most fan and broadcaster-friendly in the entire sports and entertainment industry,” the NFL reported in a statement shortly after the Department of Justice launched its investigation. “With over 87% of our games on free, broadcast television, including 100% of games in the markets of the competing teams, the NFL has for decades put our fans front and center in how we distribute our content.”
ESPN previously revealed league sources were “surprised” by the Department of Justice probe but thought it might be driven by a request from the Murdoch family, which owns Fox Corporation.
The House Judiciary Committee last visited this issue a year ago when its members asked the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB to prepare briefings on whether the government should continue to grant the antitrust exemption. A congressional source reported Goodell will be joined at the hearing by sports media personality Clay Travis and at least one other witness.
Goodell has testified on Capitol Hill on several occasions in the past, including at a 2009 hearing related to how the NFL handles concussions and again in 2022 to discuss allegations of an abusive work atmosphere at the Washington Commanders.
ESPN’s Ben Strauss and Don Van Natta Jr. contributed to this report.
