Report: DirecTV Offers Refunds to Customers Offended by NFL Protests

DirecTV is reportedly offering refunds of their Sunday Ticket packages to NFL fans offended by the recent #TakeAKnee protests.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports that customers that purchased DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket packages are being allowed to refund their orders if they state that they were offended by the recent #TakeAKnee protests in which many NFL teams refused to stand for the American national anthem. According to the Sunday Ticket’s refund policy, no refunds are to be given once the football season has started, but representatives talking to the Wall Street Journal said that exceptions were being made due to the controversy over the recent protests where NFL players kneel or link arms during the national anthem.

The WSJ reports that spokesmen for DirecTV-parent company AT&T Inc. and the National Football League have declined to comment on the story so far. Mark Hoffman, a longtime subscriber to Sunday Ticket told the Wall Street Journal that he applied for a refund but wasn’t confident he would receive one. “I honestly didn’t think I’d get a refund,” said Hoffman, “I know their guidelines, I just wanted to make a point.”

Another former subscriber, Paul Alvarado of Keller, Texas, told The New York Post, “I want to spend my money somewhere where it’s gonna be appreciated. I’m paying for a product that should not include that kind of anti-American sentiment.” It seems that the new refund policy didn’t come into effect until Tuesday however, Alvarado told The Post, “a buddy of mine canceled yesterday or the day before and he has to eat the money,” he said.

Since the start of the recent protests, the NFL’s ratings have suffered immensely with the Week Two game falling by 24 percent over last year’s Week Two and 15 percent over ratings from 2015. CBS had a rating of 8.4, with 14.5 million viewers for last Sunday’s game, but this is still quite a drop from a 9.8 rating with 16.7 million viewers in 2015. The Week Two game earned Fox a rating of 11, with 19.2 million viewers.

President Trump commented on the protests saying, “For people to disrespect that by kneeling during the playing of our national anthem, I think is disgraceful.”

Breitbart’s own John Nolte has given a detailed breakdown on why the NFL hates America, which can be read here.