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 has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.