The virtual NFL draft is a big opportunity – and a big risk – for tech firms

Coronavirus has brought video-conferencing to the fore. But it hasn’t faced a challenge with stakes as high as this, writes James Moore

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (right, with player Drew Lock at last year's draft) will be greeted by virtual boos this year (AP)

Should the NFL be holding its draft – the three-day process that brings the latest crop of superstar college players into the world’s most financially successful sports league – in the midst of a pandemic?

The moral case has been much debated. Purely in business terms, however, it is (with apologies for the basketball metaphor) a slam dunk.

The three-day event affords the NFL the opportunity to host just about the only significant sporting event of any kind globally, even if it’s one that doesn’t involve any athletic competition other than that which can be seen on the selected players’ highlight reels.