Ted Cruz: NFL has been "tiptoeing up to the rule" protecting college and high school football

The Senate Commerce Committee has proceeded with a hearing on the pivot from sports broadcasting to streaming, without any involvement by the NFL. (Commissioner Roger Goodell declined an invitation to appear.)

In his opening comments, Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) made a pointed comment about the NFL. He said the league has been “tiptoeing up to” the line that protects college and high school football from being diluted by pro football.

The line appears in the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1960, which gave the NFL a broadcast antitrust exemption with one key concession — the NFL cannot broadcast games from the second weekend in September through the second weekend in December on Friday night or Saturday.

“One growing concern is that the NFL has used its special exemption in the SBA to the frustration of college and high school football schedulers,” Cruz said, via a transcript provided by the Committee. “For example, the SBA explicitly excludes antitrust protection for the NFL if broadcasting a game on a Friday night or a Saturday between mid-September to mid-December. That’s to protect the interests of high school and college football, and ultimately, their fans who are no doubt also followers of the NFL.

“The NFL has tiptoed up to this rule, now putting a game on streaming on Black Friday afternoon, which used to be a slot reserved for prominent college football rivalries, including in some years, Texas and Texas A&M. There are millions of sports fans who like being able to follow high school, college, and professional football without having to choose amongst them. And it’s partly why Congress wrote the SBA in the manner it did.”

Cruz mentioned only the Black Friday game, which starts at 3:00 p.m. ET and ideally ends before the 6:00 p.m. ET witching hour, in support of his observation. The league also has started streaming games on the first Friday of September, when the first Friday coincides with the first week of the NFL season — and clearly conflicts with high school football.

There has been speculation that, with the Republican party controlling the White House and Congress, the NFL may press for revisions to the SBA that would eliminate the Friday night and/or Saturday exception. Given that a prominent Republican senator seems to be firmly in favor of enforcing the limits of the current law, Cruz likely would be against allowing the NFL to broadcast games within the current window that is regarded as off-limits.

The broader question is whether streaming fits within the SBA at all. That could be a question for the courts. Or it could become a subject for further legislation.

Today’s hearing seems to be a step toward considering something that would counter the exodus of live pro sports from free TV to pay TV.

We’ll continue to monitor the hearing for anything related to the NFL. You can watch it here, assuming you have consumed the appropriate amount of coffee and/or Red Bull.

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