Bucs' Games to Air Blackout Free in 2015

Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans not able to catch games at Raymond James Stadium can rest assured they’ll air on local television during the 2015 season.

The NFL announced Monday that owners voted to suspend a long-standing blackout policy for one year, Bay News 9 reported. While there were no blackouts last season because the minimum number of tickets sold, the Bucs’ faced a number of blackouts between 2010-2012, TBO.com reported.

The NFL’s policy states that home games must be sold out at least 72 hours in advance of kickoff time for a game to air locally, the website reported. The current policy was put into play in 1973 in an effort to increase ticket sales.

Whether the blackout suspension will remain after the 2015 season will be determined at a later time, the NFL reported on its website. The NFL noted that teams league-wide have made “significant efforts in recent years to minimize blackouts.” In 2014, there were none and 2013 only saw two blackouts.

“With the proliferation of booming television deals and increased public funding of stadiums, the NFL has decided to run a season without the policy in place and analyze whether the lack of a blackout threat drastically alters ticket sales in certain markets,” the NFL explained.

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