NFL protests are not hurting Pizza Hut’s overall sales

‘Not seeing impact on our business,’ chain’s CEO reports.

Papa John’s CLEVELAND — is blaming NFL protests for disappointing sales, but Pizza Hut says it’s not suffering from any effects of the league-wide demonstrations.

“We’re not seeing impact on any of that on our business,” Greg Creed, CEO of Pizza Hut parent Yum Brands said in an earnings call Thursday according to Business Insider.

Pizza Hut’s overall sales gained 3 percent in the third quarter, which Fortune reported exceeded analysts’ projections. Overall, the company, which also operates KFC and Taco Bell, experienced a 6 percent increase in sales.

Unlike Papa John’s, Pizza Hut isn’t the official pizza of the NFL and doesn’t rely on the advertising dollars spent on games as much as its competitor does.

Still, as the official pizza sponsor of NCAA football, Creed said the brand benefits from live sporting events. The rationale is the more people watch games, the more they order food and not necessarily based on the ads that are shown during the broadcast.

On a call with investors Wednesday, Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter blamed the NFL for sluggish sales, which were actually up 1 percent but below expectations.

“The NFL has hurt us by not resolving the current debacle to the players’ and owners’ satisfaction of all parties this year, year-anda-half ago,” he said.

While it’s true the league’s television ratings have been on a downward trend the last couple of seasons, it’s not clear how much can be attributed to players kneeling during the national anthem. The practice was started last season by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who kneeled to speak out against police brutality and racial inequality.

A handful of players continued the demonstrations during the preseason and early part of the regular season, but the practice became more widespread after President Trump criticized the protesters for, in his view, disrespecting the flag and anthem.

The NFL faced some backlash in the form of some fans booing or vowing not to attend or watch games on TV. Commissioner Roger Goodell, team owners and players met to discuss the issue last month, but no league policy was reached.

This past Sunday, the majority of players on the Houston Texans kneeled during the anthem in response to the team’s owner saying about their right to protest, “We can’t have inmates running the prison.”