According to ESPN reporter Darren Rovell, the national pizza chain announced Wednesday that it would remove all football-related ads after weeks of athletes “taking a knee” caused a 10% drop in Papa John’s bottom line.
“Papa John’s says it has been pulling advertising associated with the NFL. The league, it says, has given some future spots in return,” writes the ESPN journalist.
A senior editor at Nations Restaurant News said the pizza giant decided to walk-away from the league due to “negative consumer sentiment” associated with the NFL. more here
I wonder what the NFL will charge for ads for the Super Bowl this year? I hate that the players with contracts won’t feel the pinch–yet.
I’m buying pizza this weekend to reward them for doing the right thing. Papa John’s, you’d better stock up. You’re going to get swamped.
✳️ I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS TO HAPPEN! ✳️
🌟 Papa John supported Trump.
🌟 The NFL is TOXIC right now.
🌟 People boycott advertisers too you know.
🌟 People are not watching, so they are not ordering pizza. Or buying chips, 24 packs of beer, or using gas to go buy them, or buying snacks at the gas station while they are getting gas to go buy other snacks, and other impulse-shopping pick ups.
It just makes sense that the relationship is broken right now, and companies may want to step away from the NFL which is currently in a hormonal rage.
Looks like I’ll need to get some Papa John’s into me sometime in the near future. It’s not great pizza, but it does bring back memories. In college we lived just outside of town, we would order Papa John’s and ask that the delivery driver should pickup beer and cigarettes along the way. It worked about 2/3rds of the time.
Also, I really like that they provide pepperoncini and garlic butter with their pizzas.
Corky, it ain’t gonna get better during the off season. These arrogant assholes and feckless owners are in quicksand. For the first time ever, I am interested in the NFL draft, advance ticket sales and season ticket sales.
PJ’s CEO lays blame squarely on Goodell and the Owners. Says this could/should have been “nipped in the bud” when it first began a year and a half ago. He’s right.
BLM has destroyed the $ multi billion NFL.
Mission accomplished, Comrades.
Papa John’s is just the start. Their pullout gives the cover for other lemming CEOs to jump off the sinking ship as well.
Went to the local sports bar for dinner last night. The bartender said that their bar maintains a steady business during college football, but drops off precipitously during NFL.
Multiply that over all the sports bars and Buffalo Wild Wings nationwide.
NFL proves the old adage: Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
Choking the golden goose by choking their own chicken–they did all this to themselves, unprovoked !!
lololololol ! morans!
Disappearing revenues means every entity will sue every other entity.
Vendors, sponsors, networks, advertisers and creditors including Cities with pricey stadium loans with mega Banks will sue Owners, and each other, and everybody will sue the League, including Goodell personally.
The only hard assets here are the theoretical name brand value of the individual Teams and the NFL itself.
None of these will bring much at Bankruptcy auctions.
Hemingway on going from riches to bankruptcy: “It happened slowly for years, and then, all at once.”
The superbowl half-time show will probably be Larry King doing improv.
Great MJA, I needed a laugh
OK, NOW will start ordering Papa John’s pizzas again.
Just catered a Papa John’s meal for after church on Sunday at my little fellowship church group. Full beverage, salads, pizza, sticks and all.
We’re watching video replays from areas Varsity Girls Volleyball Championship series (the baby girl’s team finished 3rd).
Knew Papa John’s were stand up people!
Wonder will Comet ping pong pizzeria take Papa Johns place?
Ordering papa John’s tonight!
Good for Papa John’s. Not great pizza though and the Toronto franchies are worse. Still I might buy one during the CFL playoffs and tell the driver it’s because of what the owner did down south.
Anyway in the story its says:
“Papa John’s says it has been pulling advertising associated with the NFL. The league, it says, has given some future spots in return,” writes the ESPN journalist.
What does that mean? In return for what? Empty ad space? If the players decide to stop acting like spoiled owners?
Anyway, this one ought to sting right down to the players salaries and that’s when the reality will hit home for these idiots.
@phenry – interesting to read your comment. After reading about espn’s and cable sports channel cancelations a friend and I were wondering if sports bars were also taking a hit during nfl games from dissatisfaction with the nfl hijinks.
If you kneel…..
We boycott.
Papa John’s pizza box printer is doing cartwheels right now.
Peyton Manning is a large investor in Papa John’s…I think the has some influence and speaks truth from a former/current NFL player point of view….