US Supreme Court turns away NFL bid to move Black coach's bias claims into arbitration

WASHINGTON, May 26 : The U.S. Supreme Court turned away on Tuesday a bid by the National Football League to move a Black coach's racial discrimination claims out of federal court and into arbitration proceedings controlled by the NFL.

The justices declined to hear an appeal by the league and three of its teams filed after a lower court ruled that the NFL cannot force Brian Flores, the former Miami Dolphins head coach and current Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator, to arbitrate workplace bias claims through a process overseen by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

The teams involved in the appeal were the New York Giants, Denver Broncos and Houston Texans.

Flores, 45, has accused the NFL, the most popular professional sports league in the United States, of systematic discrimination against Black coaches.

David Gottlieb, a lawyer for Flores, welcomed the court's decision to turn away the league's appeal.

"The NFL must now accept that its commissioner cannot be the arbitrator over discrimination claims against the league and its teams," Gottlieb said. "We look forward to litigating these claims in court."

Brian McCarthy, an NFL spokesperson, said the league respects the court's decision.

"Regardless of the forum, we are fully prepared to defend ourselves as this matter proceeds," McCarthy said.

According to Flores' 2022 lawsuit, the NFL and several teams discriminated against Black candidates for coaching and management jobs in violation of federal and state laws. Flores filed the suit after being fired as head coach of the Miami Dolphins despite the team having a winning record for two consecutive seasons. 

Flores alleged that during his career he was asked to have "sham interviews" with the Giants and Broncos merely to satisfy a