NASL Loses Antitrust Lawsuit Against MLS, U.S. Soccer

A jury has found for the defense in an antitrust lawsuit brought by the defunct North American Soccer League (NASL) against the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) and Major League Soccer (MLS).

After a three-week trial, deliberations took a mere two hours.

“We are pleased the jury has recognized the lack of merit in NASL’s claims and ruled in our favor, bringing this unfounded litigation to a close,” said USSF in a statement. “This decision validates U.S. Soccer’s commitment to fostering a broad and healthy ecosystem of professional soccer leagues across all divisions.”

The NASL that brought the lawsuit should not be confused with the top-tier league that boasted Pelé and Johan Cruyff. Instead, it was an unaffiliated reboot that languished in a lower rung of the American soccer’s league system starting in 2011. After U.S. Soccer didn’t renew its Division II status in 2017, it quickly folded. The league then sued the federation and MLS, which comprises Division I, arguing they colluded to keep the upstart league out.

The NASL had been seeking $170 million in damages in a Brooklyn federal court, but most of the actual damages will hit only the plaintiff’s already diminished reputation. (If NASL had won, the $170 million in damages could have been tripled under antitrust law to more than $500 million, however, the judge ruled in the defense’s favor to reduce the potential damages by $375 million.)

During discovery, former NASL chairman Rocco Commisso was found to have used a burner Twitter account to bad-mouth MLS commissioner Don Garber and USSF president Sunil Gulati, comparing them to Harvey Weinstein and Bernie Madoff.

When future Hall of Famer Carmelo Anthony, who owned NASL club Puerto Rico FC from 2015 to 2017, testified for the plaintiffs, things got worse. Judge Hector Gonzalez wondered aloud what his testimony had to do with the case, which was brought not by owners but by the league. Had the NASL won, Gonzalez was considering changing the damages instructions to make clear that owner losses should not be included.

In the end, the jury agreed with the defense given by MLS: That the NASL went bust because of bad business decisions, not due to any nefarious collaboration between USSF and its biggest league. 

The legal saga might not be over, however. NASL counsel Jeff Kessler told Front Office Sports: “We have great respect for the jury process, but there were some fundamental legal errors made which prevented the jurors from receiving important evidence or being instructed on the correct legal standards and claims. Our client accordingly expects to appeal.”