Roger Goodell divides fans as commissioner of the NFL but he is popular among team owners.
Serving in the position since 2006, Goodell’s policies have led to a boom in the value of the NFL’s TV rights, global commercial expansion and soaring franchise values.
His salary, an incredible $64m at the last count, is justifiable on those grounds. That’s the argument of NFL team owners, anyway, even if it isn’t bought by the fans who regularly boo Goodell at the draft.
At the moment, the commissioner is concentrating on the Seattle Seahawks takeover and the possibility of the NFL moving to an 18-game season.
Sports business industry news this week meanwhile highlights just how far the league has come financially since Goodell was appointed.
NFL to make record team payout; Goodell’s revenue prediction coming true
In 2010, Goodell set the NFL the target of hitting $25bn in revenue by 2027.
With the news that the NFL paid out $14.5bn from its central distribution of national media, league-wide deals and central ticketing revenue last season, the league will surely hit that target in the coming season, if indeed it didn’t happen in 2025-26.
The $14.5bn figure has been extrapolated from Green Bay Packers’ president Ed Policy’s announcement last week that revealed his team received $453.2m from the pot.
The Packers are the only publicly-owned NFL franchise and, therefore, the only franchise who report their finances in detail.
The exact split between central and retained revenue varies from season to season, but previous campaigns have seen national revenue account for about 60 per cent of total revenues.
If that ratio holds, the NFL will have narrowly missed out on $25bn last season but will almost certainly hit that milestone in 2026-27.
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