NASL v. NFL
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
670 F.2d 1249 (1982)
Two NFL team owners (plaintiffs) acquired ownership interests in North American Soccer League (NASL) (plaintiff) teams, triggering enforcement of the NFL's (defendant) long-standing unwritten ban on any owner or immediate family member holding an interest in a team in another league; the football owners and NASL sued, arguing the ban violated section 1 of the Sherman Act, and the district court upheld the ban before NASL appealed.
Whether, if a sports league's policy banning cross-ownership of a team in another league does not have procompetitive effects which outweigh restraints on competition and the effects cannot be achieved through less restrictive means, the policy violates section 1 of the Sherman Act.