Here's how much NFL teams have been paid to show their support for the military

It's a common sight at the start of a National Football League game in the United States that some form of link with the military will feature. 

Be it a reunion between a member of a military and their family on the field, a shot of the troops on the big screen during the national anthem, or even rolling out the American flag which is held by the servicemen and women of the army, the link is one that has been firmly established over recent years.

However, what you might not have realised is that these are all paid for by the military, and the teams are given a fee to include these set pieces in their pre-match routines or game day entertainment.

According to Deadspin, the practice of the military paying these teams was revealed earlier this year by Senator Jeff Flake, who has brought a detailed report before congress that breaks down the contracts set up between the teams and the Pentagon not just in the NFL, but across a number of the major sports, from baseball to auto racing. 

The report outlines that this "paid patriotism" was a use of taxpayer money to make "unsuspecting audience members [...] the subjects of paid-marketing campaigns rather than simply bearing witness to teams' authentic, voluntary shows of support for the brave men and women who wear our nation’s uniform". 

Image: Jeff Haynes / AP/Press Association Images

There was also a rundown of which teams in the NFL have been paid the most for their participation in the scheme, with the top 10 broken down as follows:

1. Atlanta Falcons $879,000
2. New England Patriots $700,000
3. Buffalo Bills $650,000
4. Minnesota Wild $570,000
5. Baltimore Ravens $534,500
6. New Orleans Saints $472,875
7. San Diego Chargers $453,500
8. Seattle Seahawks $453,500
9. Atlanta Braves $450,000
10. Indianapolis Colts $420,000

The budget of the military in 2015 was a reported $600 billion, so these amounts are not huge in comparison, but as a result of the report by Flake and Senator John McCain, there has already been a lot of bad press.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has since stated that the league would refund all the money given to it for these events, which reportedly comes to some $6 million in total. 

Via Deadpsin

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