NFL lets Texas know a “bathroom bill” may take future Super Bowls out of the state

The National Football League just wrapped up its 2016 season by playing the Super Bowl in the city of Houston, Texas. If the state of Texas passes a controversial “bathroom bill” similar to the one seen in North Carolina, it could be some time before the NFL brings the big game back to the Lone Star State.

The bill prohibits transgendered people from using the bathroom of the sex they identify with and restricts them to using the bathroom of the sex they were born. The debate over the law in the state of Texas is continuing to grow as a decision looms for the bill to potentially be signed into law. As the debate swirls, organizations are bracing for the future in the event the bill becomes a law, including the NFL.

“If a proposal that is discriminatory or inconsistent with our values were to become law there, that would certainly be a factor considered when thinking about awarding future events,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy said to the Associated Press.

There are currently no Super Bowl games lined up for the state of Texas. Next season’s game will be played in Minneapolis. The Super Bowl will then be played in Atlanta (2019), Miami (2020) and Inglewood (2021).

The controversy over this type of bathroom law first took flight in North Carolina, which led to the NCAA taking all NCAA postseason tournaments out of the state. The NBA also took the All-Star Game out of Charlotte and the ACC picked up its ACC Football Championship Game and relocated to Orlando last year. Forbes previously estimated the state of North Carolina lost more than $600 million in potential revenue in the six months after the bill was passed into law.

Not having a Super Bowl in Texas would be quite a statement, considering the venues that can and have served as a Super Bowl host. Houston has now hosted the Super Bowl three times, and Arlington has hosted the game once (and with that venue in Arlington, it is likely it both places will host the Super Bowl again in the future, multiple times).

So the NFL has drawn a line. If the bill is passed, will the league remain on this side of the decision?

[Los Angeles Times]