NFL - ALL WEEK 4 GAMES SOLD OUT; FIRST TIME ALL NFL TV BLACKOUTS LIFTED

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NFL-75 9/28/06
ALL WEEK 4 GAMES SOLD OUT;
FIRST TIME ALL TV BLACKOUTS LIFTED
FOR FIRST FOUR WEEKS OF SEASON

For the fourth consecutive week, all games of the NFL schedule have sold out in advance of the local TV blackout deadline, enabling every game to be televised in the home-team market, the NFL announced today.

This is the first time since the NFL blackout policy took effect in 1973 that all blackouts have been lifted in the season’s first four weeks. All blackouts were lifted on NFL Kickoff 2006 Weekend (September 7, 10-11), in Week 2 (September 17-18) and Week 3 (September 24- 25).

It will be the 17th time in NFL history that blackouts have been lifted for all games on a single weekend. The previous 16 times have been on Kickoff Weekend in 1998; three times in 2000; once in 2001; four times in 2002 and 2005; and three times this season.

The NFL blackout policy states that games sold out 72 hours prior to kickoff can be televised in the home city.
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