DOJ probing NFL over potential antitrust violations in TV deals, sources say.

(ABC) — The Justice Department has opened an inquiry into whether the National Football League violated anticompetitive practices in its TV deals and then required customers to pay too much in subscription costs, according to three sources familiar with the probe.

The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 gives some limited protections for the NFL which allows for sports leagues to pool broadcast rights.

“This is about affordability and creating an even playing field for providers,” a government official told ABC News.

The Justice Department declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal first reported news of the probe.

In a statement to ABC News, the NFL defended its distribution model.

“The NFL’s media distribution model is the most fan and broadcaster-friendly in the entire sports and entertainment industry,” it said. “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. The 2025 season was our most viewed since 1989 and reflects the strength of the NFL distribution model and its wide availability to all fans.”

Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican who has been publicly urging the Justice Department to investigate the NFL’s conduct, cheered news of the antitrust probe on his X account.

“Instead of a small number of free broadcast networks, the NFL now licenses games simultaneously to subscription streaming platforms, premium cable networks, and technology companies operating under different business models,” he said on X.

“To the extent collectively licensed game packages are placed behind subscription paywalls, these arrangements may no longer align with the statutory concept of sponsored telecasting or the consumer-access rationale underlying the antitrust exemption,” he posted.

“That’s why, as chair of the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy, and Consumer Rights, I urged the DOJ to examine the Sports Broadcasting Act and its applicability to current media landscape. I’m glad they’re tackling this,” he said.