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US senators slam Pentagon for 'paid patriotism' at sports events

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The activities included paying for recruitment ceremonies, on field color-guard performances, hometown heroes ceremonies, puck drops, first pitches and other events (AFP Photo/Larry French)

Los Angeles (AFP) - American sports teams have raked in $6.8 million over almost four years from the US government as part of a multi-million taxpayer-funded program to promote military events, according to a Senate report.

The report says the Department of Defense paid NFL, NBA, MLB, MLS and NHL teams millions to bolster recruitment and promote the military by staging patriotic events at sporting events.

The activities included paying for recruitment ceremonies, on field color-guard performances, hometown heroes ceremonies, puck drops, first pitches and other perks.