In this episode, Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal of "Acquired" delve into the NFL's transformation into America's most popular sport and a media juggernaut. They explore the league's history, from its modest beginnings to its current status as a technology and entertainment powerhouse, with an annual revenue surpassing $18 billion. They discuss key figures like Pete Roselle, who shaped the NFL's narrative, and the league's strategic moves, such as embracing TV rights deals and creating iconic events like the Super Bowl. Despite controversies like CTE and the Colin Kaepernick incident, the NFL's business model remains robust, driven by shared revenues, lucrative media contracts, and a deep cultural impact. They also touch on the NFL's challenges and opportunities, including player safety, youth engagement, and international expansion. The episode concludes with reflections on the NFL's future and its enduring appeal.
"Football is America's favorite sport by far. In fact, football is more than three times as popular as the next highest sport, basketball. The Super bowl is watched by over 100 million viewers every year in approximately two thirds of american households. My favorite Super bowl stat is that it's the weekend with the fewest weddings planned of the year."
The quote emphasizes the NFL's dominance in American sports culture and its influence on TV viewership and even personal event planning, such as weddings.
"On November 6, 1869, on the campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, a group of about 25 or so Princeton students were up at Rutgers to visit a similarly sized group of Rutgers students. And what were they there for? They were there to play a game of football."
The quote describes the very early origins of American football, highlighting its collegiate roots and the social context in which it developed.
"On any given Sunday, any team in the league should be able to beat any other team."
The quote reflects the NFL's philosophy of parity, aiming to create a league where every team has a chance to win, thereby maintaining fan interest and competitive balance.
"By this point in the early 50s, there are 25 million homes in America with a television set."
The quote signifies the explosive growth of television ownership in America, setting the stage for the NFL to become a dominant force in sports broadcasting.
"That radio wets the appetite. Television satiates it."
This quote encapsulates the belief at the time that while radio increased interest in attending games, television fulfilled that interest, potentially reducing the need for attending in person.
"The New York Giants were making $200,000, and this is in 1959, on their tv deal, the packers were making zero."
This quote highlights the uneven distribution of TV revenue among NFL teams before the adoption of a league-first mentality in revenue sharing.
"45 million viewers, this was unprecedented."
The quote emphasizes the extraordinary viewership of the 1958 Championship, showcasing the untapped potential of football as a televised sport.
"But once again, the NFL owners are kind of dragging their feet. They're like, we don't really want to expand."
This quote reflects the NFL owners' hesitance to expand the league, highlighting their preference for maintaining the status quo and their close fraternity.
"We'll just centrally negotiate one national television contract for the entire AFL and then we'll split the revenue completely equally amongst all the teams."
This quote outlines the AFL's revolutionary approach to TV contracts, focusing on equal revenue sharing and central negotiation.
"Better to be lucky than good."
This quote, in reference to Roselle's appointment, underscores the fortuitous nature of his selection and his subsequent success in shaping the modern NFL.
"Roselle, within the space of a year corrals all the NFL owners and gets them to realize that the NFL has to do the same thing."
This quote highlights Roselle's persuasive ability to unite NFL owners behind a common strategy, crucial for the eventual merger with the AFL.
"The NFL fires the first shot in the new war as soon as Davis takes over."
The quote highlights the NFL's aggressive move to ignite conflict with the AFL by signing a player from the rival league, which was considered a significant betrayal of an unspoken agreement.
"We just got our merger."
This quote reflects Davis's confidence that the AFL's actions would lead to a merger with the NFL due to the competitive pressure applied.
"Our answer will be in action. This is not the time to speak."
Davis's statement emphasizes a strategic approach to the conflict, suggesting that their response would be decisive and demonstrated through actions rather than public declarations.
"You're going to send a message. You're going to come at the king. You best not miss."
This quote illustrates the importance of making a strong and unmistakable statement when challenging a powerful adversary, in this case, the NFL.
"On Wednesday, June 8th, 1966, the merger agreement gets announced in a press release."
The announcement of the merger agreement marked a significant turning point in professional football, leading to the integration of AFL teams into the NFL.
"All thanks to Al Davis. The AFL owners owed Al Davis a big glass of champagne."
This quote acknowledges Al Davis's role in significantly reducing the financial burden on AFL teams to join the NFL, highlighting his effectiveness in the negotiations.
"Anyone with less than a 50,000 seat stadium needs to change that."
The mandate for larger stadiums reflects the NFL's vision for a more professional and commercially viable league post-merger.
"Lyndon Johnson signed it into law."
The involvement of the U.S. President in signing the law underscores the significance of the merger and the role of government in shaping the future of professional football.
"The first Monday night football game that airs that season is watched by 60 million US households."
The quote signifies the immediate and overwhelming success of Monday Night Football, highlighting its impact on the NFL's popularity and media presence.
"46 million Americans, or 18% of betting age US adults, bet on the NFL this year."
This quote highlights the massive scale of betting on NFL games, indicating a strong engagement from the audience.
"81% of sports bettors bet on NFL games, versus just over 50% for the NBA and 44% for Major League Baseball."
This quote demonstrates the NFL's dominance in the sports betting market compared to other major sports leagues.
"This past year, each team got right around 350,000,000 from the shared league revenue."
This quote provides a figure for the shared revenue each NFL team receives, which is a substantial base income for all teams.
"61% comes from media. Most of that is the TV from the shared league revenue."
This quote explains that the majority of the NFL's revenue comes from media rights, particularly television deals.
"The NFL settled a billion dollar lawsuit to pay out victims."
This quote refers to the NFL's settlement regarding CTE, acknowledging the league's responsibility for player health issues.
"The NFL didn't acknowledge that until 2016."
This quote criticizes the NFL's late acknowledgment of the link between football and CTE, suggesting a delay in addressing player health concerns.
"Youth football remains robust. College football remains robust."
This quote reflects the speaker's perspective on the current state of youth and college football, though it is countered by evidence of declining participation rates.
"Only 23% of Gen Z say that the NFL is their favorite professional sport."
This quote indicates a generational shift in sports preferences, with the NFL being less favored by younger audiences.
"The commissioner is hired to do one job, and that job is speak for and do things that are in the best interests of the owners as a whole."
This quote clarifies the commissioner's primary responsibility, which is to serve the interests of the NFL team owners.
"So in the good old days of football, it was a bunch of reasonably young, enterprising owners who loved football and owned teams."
This quote contrasts the past and present nature of NFL ownership, suggesting a shift from passion-driven ownership to a more business-oriented approach.
"The NFL is going to be just fine and that revenue is almost assuredly going to grow at a very healthy clip."
This quote expresses confidence in the NFL's continued financial growth despite various challenges.
"The NFL has tried NFL Europe, kind of shut that down. Couldn't get the owners to care about it."
This quote discusses the NFL's unsuccessful attempts at international expansion, highlighting the lack of owner interest as a contributing factor.