NFL fining players for selling SB tickets above face value

The NFL is fining about 100 players and two dozen club employees for violating league policy by selling Super Bowl 59 tickets for above face value, a person with knowledge of the details told The Associated Press on Friday. The person, speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, said the players who resold their tickets will have to pay a fine of 1 1/2 times the face value they paid. They also won't be permitted to buy tickets for the next two Super Bowls unless they are playing in the game. Club employees who violated the policy will be fined two times face value. In a memo sent to teams and obtained by the AP, NFL head of compliance Sabrina Perel said the league was still completing its investigation. "Our initial investigation has determined that a number of NFL players and coaches, employed by several NFL Clubs, sold Super Bowl tickets for more than the ticket's face value in violation of the Policy. This long-standing League Policy, which is specifically incorporated into the Collective Bargaining Agreement, prohibits League or Club employees, including players, from selling NFL game tickets acquired from their employer for more than the ticket's face value or for an amount greater than the employee originally paid for the ticket, whichever is less. We are in the process of completing our investigation into this matter, but the investigation has revealed that club employees and players sold their tickets to a small number of 'bundlers' who were working with a ticket reseller to sell the Super Bowl tickets above face value." The "bundlers" will face increased penalties, per the memo. According to the CBA, players on all 32 teams can purchase two tickets for the Super Bowl. "In advance of Super Bowl LX, we will be enhancing the mandatory compliance training regarding the Policy for all League personnel, which will emphasize the specific requirements of the Policy and the broader principle that no one should profit personally from their NFL affiliation at the expense of our fans," Perel said in the memo. "We will also increase the penalties for future violations of this Policy. All clubs must ensure their personnel understand and comply with this policy. Additional details regarding the enhanced compliance measures will be provided in early fall." The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9 in a Super Bowl rematch from two years ago.