Pizza Hut becomes official pizza of NFL after Papa John’s split
Papa John’s Pizza and the NFL announced on Tuesday that they have mutually decided to terminate their longstanding partnership, and the league has wasted no time inking a deal with a new official pizza sponsor.
On Wednesday, Pizza Hut and the NFL announced that they have gone into business together.
JUST IN: Less than 14 hours after Papa John’s signs off as the official pizza of the NFL, @pizzahut swoops in. Papa John’s deal was set to go until 2020. Pizza Hut now has deal through 2021 season. pic.twitter.com/ioVqZgJly9
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) February 28, 2018
Terry Lefton of Sports Business Daily reports that the NFL’s deal with Pizza Hut is worth more than its deal with Papa John’s was. That makes sense, as Pizza Hut is by far the biggest pizza chain in the United States and should have a wider reach.
It was not a shock that the NFL and Papa John’s parted ways, as the restaurant chain had some controversies surrounding the NFL during the season. Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter attributed a drop in sales to the NFL’s national anthem controversy, and there were rumblings that Jerry Jones was behind the comments. Schnatter has since resigned as CEO of Papa John’s.