
With the
backdrop of yet another NFL marketing partner suspending activities or promotions, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he didn’t believe the league is close to losing any sponsors.
“I
got it wrong,” said Goodell, at a major NFL press conference -- something he has said previously. “We will get our house in order.”
On Friday, Procter & Gamble said it
was canceling a major breast cancer awareness promotion it had been planning with the NFL, the latest sponsor to respond to the NFL's growing problems.
Earlier in the week, Minnesota
Vikings’ Adrian Peterson witnessed his deal with Nike suspended, due to child abuse allegations. Also, the Radisson hotel chain suspended its limited sponsorship with Peterson’s team, the
Minnesota Vikings.
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“I disappointed myself, the NFL, our fans, and our partners,” says Goodell. “I made it clear on [August] 28th to ownership -- and since. I made it clear to
sponsors directly.” When asked whether NFL was close to losing league sponsors, Goodell said: “You’ll have to speak to sponsors themselves. I don’t believe so.”
Concerning P&G decision to pull its promotion, Goodell said: “Several of our sponsors have promotions in the marketplace that are inconsistent with what is going on. We understand that.
What we said is that we are going to clean up our house. We are going to make a difference, and they want to see us make a difference.”
As part of the press conference, Goodell says the
NFL will change its players' personal conduct policy, as well as joining major domestic abuse and sexual violence organizations.
Earlier in the week, Anheuser-Busch -- which spends around $200
a million concerning NFL media and activities -- voiced concerns over the NFL, its difficulties with how it has handled specific off-field activities of players.
After Anheuser-Busch's
statement, other big league sponsors have issued similar statements -- including McDonald's, PepsiCo, Campbell's Soup and Visa.