TikTok, Fanatics and the NFL are facing a federal lawsuit accusing them of working together to push independent sports memorabilia sellers off TikTok’s livestream marketplace and redirect their customers toward Fanatics.

Attorney Ariel Givner highlighted the complaint this week, describing it as a fight over control of the rapidly growing sports collectibles market.

“Big players allegedly used TikTok’s power and NFL licensing muscle to control the market and shut out competition,” Givner wrote on X.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by David Allan Skalsky and QCBRIPNSHIP LLC, which operated the livestream memorabilia business Quad City Breaks.

Skalsky alleges TikTok, its parent company ByteDance, Fanatics and several NFL entities conspired to remove or suppress independent sellers known as “breakers.” These sellers livestream the opening of sealed boxes containing sports cards or memorabilia before distributing the contents to customers who purchased individual slots.

The complaint claims the market expanded rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing thousands of small operators to build businesses selling authentic merchandise through TikTok and other platforms.

According to the lawsuit, the defendants falsely suggested Fanatics possessed exclusive rights to sell broad categories of officially licensed NFL merchandise. Skalsky maintains that independent sellers had legally acquired authentic products and were entitled to resell them.

“The object of the conspiracy was to exclude independent memorabilia sellers from TikTok unless they agreed to sell Fanatics’ merchandise exclusively,” the complaint alleges.

Givner said the lawsuit claims sellers received threatening communications on NFL letterhead, lost access to their accounts and saw years of accumulated followers and platform visibility erased.

The complaint further alleges TikTok offered some sellers a path back onto the platform if they agreed to purchase merchandise exclusively through Fanatics and pay the company a percentage of their sales.

Skalsky claims Quad City Breaks was once generating as much as $200,000 per month. Repeated account bans beginning in late 2024 allegedly devastated the business, eventually contributing to its bankruptcy and the loss of his family’s home.

The lawsuit argues the alleged conduct harmed more than a single seller by reducing consumer choice, limiting alternative distribution channels and concentrating greater control of the memorabilia market within Fanatics-affiliated businesses.

It includes claims under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, California Cartwright Act and state unfair competition laws. Skalsky is also alleging false advertising, interference with business relationships and breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

He is seeking financial damages, restoration of his TikTok account and its previous algorithmic standing, cancellation of the disputed exclusive arrangements and an injunction preventing the alleged practices from continuing.

The case arrives as the broader box-breaking industry faces separate legal scrutiny over whether some randomized break formats could qualify as unlawful gambling or lotteries. Those challenges involve different allegations and should not be confused with Skalsky’s antitrust claims.

The latest lawsuit instead centers on whether TikTok, Fanatics and the NFL improperly used platform access and licensing relationships to eliminate legitimate competitors.

“TikTok, Fanatics, and the NFL got sued this week for allegedly teaming up to wipe out independent sports memorabilia sellers on TikTok,” Givner wrote.

The claims remain allegations and have not been proven in court. The materials provided do not include formal responses from TikTok, Fanatics or the NFL.