Pizza Hut in, Papa John’s out as sponsor of NFL

reportedly had three years remaining on its deal, said in a joint statement with the NFL on Tuesday that the split was “mutual.”

The relationship between the two giants began to fracture over the last year, with former Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter blaming the league’s handling of players protesting during the national anthem on the company’s decline in sales.

“The NFL has hurt us. We are disappointed the NFL and its leadership did not resolve this,” Schnatter said in November. “Leadership starts at the top, and this is an example of poor leadership.”

Schnatter had said the issues that emerged from the protests should have been “nipped in the bud” when Colin Kaepernick began kneeling on the sideline a year-and-a-half ago. Schnatter eventually apologized for his remarks and stepped down as CEO on Jan. 1, though he remained with Papa John’s as a chairman.

Some team owners reportedly believed that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who owns stake in over 100 Papa John’s locations, encouraged Schnatter’s attack of the league.

Nevertheless, the NFL seems to have secured a win. As America’s largest pizza chain, Pizza Hut has more than twice as many locations as Papa John’s with more than 7,500 stores, giving the league greater exposure.

Pizza Hut’s new deal will begin on April 1, with its marketing campaign kicking off at the NFL draft, which takes place April 26-28 at the Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.