{"id":2583781,"date":"2026-03-25T17:06:02","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T21:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T17:09:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T21:09:29","slug":"florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Tells NFL To Abandon &#8216;Race-And-Sex-Based Hiring Policies&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fflorida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2583781&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Florida\u2019s attorney general warned teh NFL that it may <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >face civil rights enforcement<\/a> if it does not abandon its race- and sex-based hiring policies, specifically the Rooney rule. AG James Uthmeier said he would issue a letter to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell ahead of the league\u2019s upcoming meetings, arguing that the Rooney Rule violates Florida law by conditioning hiring opportunities on race and sex. He contended that the rule and related diversity initiatives amount to discriminatory practices that deprive some applicants of employment and training opportunities, and he demanded a commitment by May 1 that the league will stop enforcing the Rooney Rule for Florida-based teams.<\/p>\n<p>The Federalist notes that the Rooney Rule was adopted in 2003 to require interviewing diverse candidates and has since been expanded to more positions. It also mentions a 2022 update that includes women within the minority candidate definition.The NFL had not responded to The Federalist\u2019s request for comment at the time of publication. The piece includes a social-media excerpt from the AG and a citation to the NFL\u2019s own description of the rule,which frames the policy as a merit-based initiative tied to the league\u2019s DEI efforts.<\/p>\n<p>The article is written by Shawn Fleetwood, a staff writer for The Federalist, and provides his bio and links to related content and tags, including civil rights law, DEI, Florida, James Uthmeier, NFL, race- and sex-based hiring, Rooney Rule, and sports.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8WhYJIxubaI\">USA TODAY Sports\/YouTube<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/25\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Florida%20Tells%20NFL%20To%20Abandon%20%E2%80%98Race-And-Sex-Based%20Hiring%20Policies%E2%80%99%20Or%20Face%20Legal%20Action&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/25\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Florida%20Tells%20NFL%20To%20Abandon%20%E2%80%98Race-And-Sex-Based%20Hiring%20Policies%E2%80%99%20Or%20Face%20Legal%20Action&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/25\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/25\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Florida%20Tells%20NFL%20To%20Abandon%20%E2%80%98Race-And-Sex-Based%20Hiring%20Policies%E2%80%99%20Or%20Face%20Legal%20Action&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/03\/25\/florida-tells-nfl-to-abandon-race-and-sex-based-hiring-policies-or-face-legal-action\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>The state of Florida is warning the National Football League (<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/nfl\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NFL<\/a>) that it may face legal action if it fails to abandon its &ldquo;race-and-sex-based hiring policies.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Next week, the NFL&rsquo;s annual league meeting begins in Phoenix, Arizona, and the NFL draft is only a month away. Ahead of the annual meeting, my office is sending a letter to the NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, regarding the league&rsquo;s hiring practices &mdash; specifically, the use of the so-called &ldquo;Rooney Rule,&rdquo; which requires NFL teams to interview candidates based on race,&rdquo; Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/AGJamesUthmeier\/status\/2036877316664459440?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> on Wednesday. &ldquo;The NFL&rsquo;s use of the Rooney Rule violates Florida law by requiring race-based considerations in hiring.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1216612788\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <span class=\"ThIjtfn\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Professional sports are a visible example of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boston-public-schools-will-suspend-advanced-classes-because-too-many-students-in-them-are-white-or-asian\/\" title=\"Boston Public Schools Will Suspend Advanced Classes Because Too Many Students In Them Are White Or Asian\">merit-based system<\/a>, but through the Rooney Rule, the NFL requires its teams to use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nations-largest-public-university-hit-with-class-action-suit-over-race-based-hiring-practices\/\" title=\"Nation\u2019s Largest Public University Hit With Class Action Suit Over ...Based ... ...\">race-based hiring practices<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>We are putting Commissioner Roger Goodell on notice: the Rooney Rule violates Florida law, and it must stop. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/g8La6TzUZw\">pic.twitter.com\/g8La6TzUZw<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AGJamesUthmeier\/status\/2036877316664459440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>According to the NFL&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/operations.nfl.com\/inside-football-ops\/inclusion\/the-rooney-rule\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">website<\/a>, the Rooney Rule was first adopted in 2003 at the recommendation of what is now the league&rsquo;s Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee. The practice &ldquo;originally required every team with a head coaching vacancy to interview at least one or more diverse candidates before making a new hire,&rdquo; but has since been expanded &ldquo;to include a greater number of positions across NFL clubs.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>The league also updated its policy in 2022 to include women &ldquo;as a part of the minority candidate definition.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>In his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.myfloridalegal.com\/sites\/default\/files\/rooney-rule_signed.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">letter<\/a> to Goodell, Uthmeier argued that the Rooney Rule and the NFL&rsquo;s &ldquo;related &lsquo;diversity&rsquo; initiatives&rdquo; violate existing Florida law. He noted that the Florida Civil Rights Act prohibits employers from engaging in discriminatory hiring practices &mdash; practices which he claimed the league is currently implementing.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Rooney Rule and its offshoots require precisely what Florida law forbids,&rdquo; Uthmeier wrote. &ldquo;They require teams to limit, segregate, and classify applicants for certain employment and training opportunities because of race and sex. And they do so in a way that tends to deprive applicants of opportunities for employment.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Florida attorney general went on to contend that, under the NFL&rsquo;s current hiring practices, applicants &ldquo;of certain approved races are guaranteed at least two interview opportunities, while applicants of disapproved races are not.&rdquo; He further argued that similar dynamics exist when it comes to the league&rsquo;s employment guarantees &ldquo;for certain positions&rdquo; and &ldquo;special training and apprenticeship opportunities.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In other words, people with race and sex characteristics that the NFL doesn&rsquo;t like are deprived of employment and training opportunities [that are] available to people with race and sex characteristics that the NFL likes. This policy is blatant race and sex discrimination. And it is illegal under Florida law,&rdquo; Uthmeier wrote. <\/p>\n<p>Uthmeier demanded that Goodell confirm &ldquo;no later than&rdquo; May 1 that the league will no longer enforce the Rooney Rule &ldquo;or any variation or extension thereof&rdquo; on teams headquartered in Florida. Should the league fail to do so, he said, it may be subject to &ldquo;civil rights enforcement action.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The NFL did not respond to The Federalist&rsquo;s immediate request for comment. <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics and RealClearHealth. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/civil-rights-law\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">civil rights law<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/dei\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">DEI<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/florida\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Florida<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/james-uthmeier\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">James Uthmeier<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/nfl\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">NFL<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/race-based-hiring\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">race-based hiring<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rooney-rule\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Rooney Rule<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/sex-based-hiring\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">sex-based hiring<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/sports-2\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">sports<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier warned the NFL it could face legal action if it continues its race- and sex-based hiring policies, saying he will send a letter to Commissioner Roger Goodell before the league meeting and draft. He argues the Rooney Rule and related DEI initiatives violate the Florida Civil Rights Act by mandating race- and sex-based hiring considerations.<\/p>\n<p>Key points:<br \/>\n&#8211; The Rooney Rule began in 2003 to require interviewing diverse candidates for head coaching jobs and has since expanded to more roles; a 2022 update added women to the minority category.<br \/>\n&#8211; Uthmeier contends the rule creates discriminatory effects, giving some races guaranteed interviews while others are excluded, and similar biases in promotions and training opportunities.<br \/>\n&#8211; He demanded Goodell confirm by May 1 that Florida-based teams will stop enforcing the Rooney Rule or any variant; failure could lead to civil rights enforcement action.<br \/>\n&#8211; The NFL did not respond to comment requests<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2583782,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NFL.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[5113,76533,7215],"class_list":["post-2583781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-florida","tag-hiringpolicies","tag-nfl"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NFL.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2583781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2583781"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2583781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2583785,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2583781\/revisions\/2583785"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2583782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2583781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2583781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2583781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}