The National Football League has agreed to a $765 million settlement in a dispute with retired players over the health impact from concussions. The settlement takes a potentially negative distraction away from the league before the start of its season. Fans love big hits, but they don't want to think about the damage those hits may incur in the long term. The NFL doesn't want any storms brewing that could damage the brand and its still increasing popularity.
After the lockout, the NFL signed contract extensions with CBS, NBC, and Fox that saw a 50% increase in rights fees. Disney's ESPN franchise paid even more, a 73% increase to $1.9 billion per year for Monday Night Football. Thanks to those deals, the league's revenue stream was in no danger of drying up soon, but if fans started to turn away from the violence inherent to the sport, it could have weakened the NFL's leverage for the next round of deals early in the next decade.
In this video, analyst David Williamson discusses the NFL and why its recent settlement with players is a win for the league. Learn how investors may benefit from health-care stocks associated with the concussion settlement and watch as David uncovers the truth behind why DIRECTV may lose its all-access Sunday Ticket to a huge tech giant.
