Papa John's CEO blames NFL for slower sales

John Schnatter.
(Image credit: Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Papa John's is blaming NFL protests, not the taste of its pizza, for lackluster sales.

On Tuesday afternoon, the company released its third-quarter financial report, which revealed that sales rose just 1 percent at locations in North American, below expectations; at the same time a year ago, sales were up 5.5 percent. Shares dropped 11 percent on Wednesday, and CEO and founder John Schnatter, who owns about 25 percent of Papa John's, lost $70 million; Forbes estimates he's now worth $801 million.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.