NFL Sweetens Offer To Spurned Fans

The National Football League has sweetened its offer to the 400 or so fans who were turned away from Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium two weeks ago, in the form of a letter sent by Commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday.

The letter, based on a series of discussions between Goodell and the affected fans, proposes the “greater of $5,000 or your actual substantiated expenses in defined categories for attending Super Bowl XLV.” The initial proposal allowed fans to choose between $2,400--three times the face value of a ticket--or a free ticket to any future Super Bowl, including Super Bowl XLVI next year in Indianapolis.

At least a couple of lawsuits have been filed against the NFL and the Dallas Cowboys. Last week, the NFL’s vice president of football operations lashed out at the lawyers who were filing the class action suits; one such lawyer, the Los Angeles-based Michael Avenatti--who has filed one suit in federal court--recently sent Goodell a letter that was then distributed to the media.

In the letter, Avenatti clarifies the affected fans’ wishes, per the Dallas Morning News:

“As I have stated publicly, the fans are incredibly reasonable—they merely want just compensation, starting with full reimbursement of all ticket costs and travel expenses.”