FILE PHOTO: Commissioner of the NFL Roger Goodell is pictured at an event in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., November 30, 2017. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo
(Reuters) – A federal judge on Thursday refused to order the National Football League to replay the conference title game, where the Los Angeles Rams defeated the New Orleans Saints and gained entry to the Super Bowl after a critical missed call by officials.
U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan in New Orleans said the Saints season-ticket holders who sued over the Jan. 20 game had no right to compel the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell to enforce league rules that could, in extraordinary cases, allow the game to be rescheduled or reverse its outcome.
Morgan had agreed to rule on an expedited basis, with the Rams slated to oppose the New England Patriots in Sunday’s Super Bowl.
Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bernadette Baum