NFL Faces a Consumer Lawsuit Over Licensing and Merchandise Prices

The National Football League and sports merchandise giant Fanatics have been sued for allegedly conspiring to curb competition in the online retail market for jerseys, t-shirts and other licensed goods, causing consumers to pay artificially high prices.

The prospective antitrust class action lawsuit was filed in federal court in Manhattan on Friday by an Illinois resident who claims the NFL and its 32 professional football teams schemed with Jacksonville, Florida-based Fanatics to give it an unlawful advantage over other retailers.

“Instead of competing for sales, defendants have simply handed Fanatics the proverbial keys to their stores,” the lawsuit said. In turn, “Fanatics shares its monopoly profits with the teams,” it said.

Read the source article at Nasdaq