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The Justice Department reportedly opened an investigation into the NFL on Thursday into whether the league used anticompetitive tactics against fans.
The Wall Street Journal was first to report the investigation.
PK Press Club Digital has reached out to the Department of Justice and the NFL for comment.
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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell speaks during a press conference after Super Bowl LX at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California on February 9, 2026. (Matthieu Huang/Icon Sportswire)
The reported investigation comes as Trump administration officials and lawmakers have warned of a review of the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961. The law allows the NFL to negotiate league-wide television deals without violating U.S. antitrust rules, provided it meets certain conditions, including protecting customer access.
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, addressed the issue in a letter to the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission. He requested a review of the league’s antitrust exemption status.
Meanwhile, soaring streaming prices and exorbitant ticket costs have combined to make it impossible for the average American NFL fan to watch their beloved game altogether or impossible to find.
A March PK Press Club poll indicated that 72% of sports fans believe major sporting events should remain free on television, as the NFL considers allowing teams to sell rights to preseason games to streaming services.
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FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said last month on “Fox & Friends” that officials were reviewing thousands of comments on whether a significant portion of sports should remain free on television.
The Amazon Prime Video Thursday Night Football logo appears on a television camera during the second half of the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Las Vegas Raiders at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on November 29, 2024. (Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images)
Carr said the FCC was studying whether sports leagues should continue to receive a special antitrust exemption and that public comments sought on the matter were largely in favor of keeping games more accessible.
“We actually received thousands and thousands of comments. That was a significant number for the FCC… So far, the vast majority, based on an initial assessment, support keeping a significant portion of these sports games on a free, over-the-air television channel,” Carr said.
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“So we’re going to look into it. There could be action in other areas of government, as well as in Congress, if these sports leagues continue to lobby on this issue.”
Carr made his feelings clear, saying he thought the experience of finding a game to watch had become frustrating and expensive.
“You actually have to have a computer science degree to decipher this,” he said, adding that, historically, television networks and sports leagues had a mutually beneficial relationship that allowed the leagues to grow while supporting local news.
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“We are at a critical point where these leagues can go so far, putting games behind paywalls, that they undermine their ability to claim this antitrust exemption.”
NFL fans themselves have also spoken out about the league’s streaming strategy.
OutKick’s Davey Hudson took to the streets of Nashville and New York last month to speak to disgruntled football fans.
“I think it’s frustrating to just want to watch a game and have to figure out which app it’s on. And then you’re paying for multiple apps all the time,” one fan said.
Another fan was blunt, calling the current match viewing system “fucking stupid.”
“Well this is really stupid, you have to have five different platforms to watch all the games you want, and you still have to pay extra. It’s ridiculous at this point,” the fan said.
One fan called it “painful” knowing where and when games are streamed.
Another fan called it a “money grab,” citing Netflix as the latest streaming service the NFL has set up to start showing its games.
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NFL fans who want access to every game must purchase YouTube TV for “NFL Sunday Ticket,” in addition to expensive subscriptions for all streaming services the NFL broadcasts on. These streaming services are Amazon Prime, Peacock and Netflix. The combination of these respective services adds up to more than $1,500 per year, and that doesn’t include fees associated with basic cable packages or the high-speed Wi-Fi needed to accommodate the platforms.
