John Schnatter continues to put his foot in his mouth.
On Wednesday, Forbes reported that Schnatter, the founder and chairman of Papa John's pizza, used a racial slur during a conference call with a business partner in May.
“Colonel Sanders called blacks n-----s,” Schnatter said. He then complained that Sanders never faced public backlash.
The remarks reportedly caused the business partner, Laundry Service, to end their arrangement.
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Schnatter on Wednesday apologized in an emailed statement for using the racial slur.
"News reports attributing the use of inappropriate and hurtful language to me during a media training session regarding race are true," Schnatter said. "Regardless of the context, I apologize. Simply stated, racism has no place in our society."
Schnatter previously criticized the NFL's handling of the national anthem controversy.
“We’re disappointed the NFL and its leadership did not resolve this [protest controversy],” Schnatter said. “Leadership starts at the top and this is an example of poor leadership. NFL leadership has hurt Papa John’s shareholders.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones then came to Schnatter in a public defense. Jones reportedly owns 120 Papa John's franchises.
In February, the NFL announced that Papa Johns would no longer be the league's official pizza.
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