A new report has shed light on NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's hefty annual earnings as the league's top official.
Goodell was paid nearly $128 million combined for each of the past two seasons, the New York Times reported on Thursday night.
The compensation figure includes base salary as well as bonuses and escalators for overseeing labor peace and brokering lucrative media rights deals on behalf of the league, the report said.
The nine-figure two-year earnings places Goodell among the highest paid executives in the country, the Times reported.
The figures were revealed during the course of this week's meetings among NFL owners and league officials, including Goodell, according to the Times.
As part of the meetings, Goodell, now in his 16th season at the helm after taking over for Paul Taglibue prior to the 2006 season, made his pitch for his annual salary, which is determined by several committees made up of the league's owners.
Goodell's current five-year contract went into effect in 2019, and could be worth as much as $200 million with bonuses, the Times said.
Goodell's tenure has been marked by both the explosive growth of the league, particularly with respect to its lucrative TV deals, and a series of public crises.
Football remains America's favorite sport, but the league has weathered countless controversies, including its mishandling of domestic violence incidents; the blackballing of Colin Kaepernick over his peaceful protest against police violence and systemic racism; its seemingly inconsistent response to teams playing fast and loose with the rules; and, most recently, the Washington Football Team workplace investigation.
Goodell and other NFL executives' compensation was previously disclosed in the league's annual tax filings owing to its tax-exempt status. However, the league gave up those exemptions in 2015.
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