Journal of Sports Economics RSS feed -- OnlineFirst Articles

Returns to Stardom: Evidence From U.S. Major League Soccer

Kuethe, T. H., Motamed, M. — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:00:13 PST

This study examines the wage determination of professional soccer players in the U.S. Major League Soccer (MLS). In particular, the authors focus on the superstar effects of the league’s top athletes. Given the structure of the league, the MLS-designated player rule and all-star game participation provide unique measures of superstar status unattainable in existing studies. We find evidence of a superstar premium both on average and among the league’s top earners.

Not So Fast, My Friend: Biases in College Football Polls

Mirabile, M. P., Witte, M. D. — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:00:13 PST

The national championship game in Division IA football is selected in part by voters. Are the voters biased? Examining all weekly rankings from 2004 to 2008, the authors find the following results. Voters in the USA Today (Coaches') Poll tend to rank their team’s recent opponents 4.3 places higher than the average voting coach and rank the recent opponents of their alma mater 3.2 places higher. Additionally, both coaches and sports media (AP Poll) overassess teams who play in certain Bowl Championship Series (BCS) conferences relative to non-BCS conferences and reward "running up the score" by voting teams with high offensive output above their peers.

Comment: The Payoff to Leadership in Teams

Brook, S. — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:00:12 PST

In a recent paper estimating the wage premium to leaders in the NHL, Duetscher (2009) has made what I feel are measurement and specification errors in the estimation of the wage premium to leaders in the NHL. Here I lay out my views as to the problems and possible remedies to the solution.

A New Test of Compensating Differences: Evidence on the Importance of Unobserved Heterogeneity

Michaelides, M. — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:59:47 PST

Previous evidence on the validity of the compensating differences theory has been ambiguous. This is mainly attributed to that, in most contexts, important components of worker skills are unobserved, leading to biased estimates of compensating differences. This article uses data on professional basketball players, which contain rich measures of worker ability, measures of employer nonpecuniary characteristics, and location amenities, to produce a new test of the theory. Empirical results strongly support the theory’s predictions in this context. Using this data, we also find that when important measures of player skills are omitted from the specification, there is only limited evidence in support of compensating differences. Our findings indicate that in the presence of unobserved heterogeneity, the quality of the empirical results is distorted and inference on the validity of the theory is misleading.

Estimating Production Efficiency in Men's NCAA College Basketball: A Bayesian Approach

Rimler, M. S., Song, S., Yi, D. T. — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:59:47 PST

Using Bayesian analysis with Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) estimation, we generate estimates of technical efficiency for each game played by an Atlantic 10 Conference men’s basketball team during the 2005-2006 season. The flexibility of MCMC, and its ability to provide an objective measure for assessing model fit, makes it preferable to maximum likelihood (ML) estimation of stochastic production frontiers. Within the context of men’s basketball, this article addresses the question of whether technical efficiency necessarily leads to success relative to one’s competitors. Results indicate that (a) technical efficiency does not vary significantly, either across or within teams, implying that teams in the A-10 play at very close and high levels of efficiency and (b) technical efficiency does not correlate strongly with productivity, suggesting that the fundamental quality of one’s resources are more important than an efficient use of those resources. In addition, parameter estimates suggest that a single turnover or offensive rebound could mean the difference between winning and losing.

Measuring the Performance of Nations at the Beijing Summer Olympics Using an Integer-Valued DEA Model

Wu, J., Zhou, Z., Liang, L. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:22 PST

A number of studies have used data envelopment analysis (DEA) to evaluate the performance of the countries in Olympic Games. While the fact that numbers of three kinds of medal must only take integer values is ignored. This study discusses, by means of integer-valued DEA model, the performance of each country at 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games. The model in the article considers two inputs (gross domestic product [GDP] per capita and population) and three outputs (number of gold, silver, and bronze medals won); the integrality constraints of three kinds of medal and the weight restrictions among three outputs are also included. The results for the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games are analyzed, and integral output targets are also provided for poorly performing countries to use as benchmarks.

Designated Hitter Rule Debate: A Search for Mr. Hyde in Pitchers

Kawaura, A. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:22 PST

This article investigates the effect of baseball’s designated hitter rule on the number of hit batsmen, with a focus on individual pitchers. Researchers have debated the rule’s incentives for pitchers and its impact on hit batsmen based on aggregate and cross-section statistics: They treat pitchers as a group. This article argues that individual pitchers are concerned with their reputation in the baseball community, and that they do not necessarily respond to the rule change by throwing at batters. Analyses of performance data of individual pitchers in a Japanese baseball league indicate that the rule did not prompt their behavioral change.

Valuing Cricketers Using Hedonic Price Models

Karnik, A. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:22 PST

This article is concerned with estimating hedonic price equations for cricketers. The 2008 auction in India for cricketers to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) of Twenty20 cricket has revealed the bids made for 75 players. Using the information on the bids, the author has estimated hedonic price equations. The author finds that the usual way of judging cricketers—in terms of runs scored and wickets taken—is reflected in the estimated equations. In addition, young players command a substantial premium over other players as do players from India and Australia. The author extends the analysis to evaluate the performance of players in the IPL tournament of 2008 and estimates the rates of return to the owners of the teams. The estimated models are checked for robustness by incorporating the results of the IPL Auction of 2009. The author finds that the models are robust to the inclusion of additional cricketers bought during the latest IPL auction.

Corruption in Professional Sumo: An Update on Study of Duggan and Levitt

Dietl, H. M., Lang, M., Werner, S. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:22 PST

In the December 2002 issue of the American Economic Review, Mark Duggan and Steven D. Levitt published an article on corruption in professional sumo. In the present article, the authors update the study of Duggan and Levitt to take into account changes since January 2000. The authors find strong statistical evidence that corruption is reduced after January 2000 but reappears in the period from 2003 to 2006. In addition, they can show that the nonlinearity in the incentive structure disappears from 2000 to 2003 and reappears after 2003. These results confirm the findings of Duggan and Levitt, who suggest that the structure of promotion in rankings gives incentives to the sumo wrestlers to rig matches.

The Effects of Higher Admission Standards on NCAA Student-Athletes: An Analysis of Proposition 16

Price, J. A. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:20 PST

This study examines the effect of an increase in minimum admissions standards on college enrollment and graduation rates of student-athletes. In 1996, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) enacted Proposition 16, which increased admission standards for freshmen student-athletes at Division I schools, in an effort to improve graduation rates. Results indicate that Proposition 16 increased graduation rates significantly for Black student-athletes, and had no significant impact on graduation rates for White student-athletes. Results also indicate that graduation rates declined for Black student-athletes at Division II schools, which may have been driven by students transferring to Division I. As a result of the higher admission standards, Division I schools changed recruiting patterns and relied less on freshmen student-athletes, particularly Black student-athletes, to fill scholarships. Even though fewer Black freshmen student-athletes enrolled in Division I schools, the overall number of Black student-athletes did not change, suggesting that a greater proportion of transfer students into Division I schools were Black.

Voter Bias in the Associated Press College Football Poll

Coleman, B. J., Gallo, A., Mason, P., Steagall, J. W. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:21 PST

The authors investigate multiple biases in the individual weekly ballots submitted by the 65 voters in the Associated Press college football poll in 2007. Using censored Tobit modeling, they find evidence of bias toward teams (a) from the voter’s state, (b) in conferences represented in the voter’s state, (c) in selected Bowl Championship Series conferences, and (d) that played in televised games, particularly on relatively prominent networks. They also find evidence of inordinate bias toward simplistic performance measures—number of losses, and losing in the preceding week—even after controlling for performance using mean team strength derived from 16 so-called computer rankings.

Impact of Advance Ticket Sales on Attendance in the Finnish Football League

Iho, A., Heikkila, J. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:21 PST

The authors analyze the effect of advance ticket sales (ATS) on Finnish football league attendances. We postulate a linear ordinary least squares (OLS) model for log-attendance data from the years 1991-2007. Match day weather, timing of the match, team performance and match characteristics together with team, year, month, and stadium- specific dummies are used as the other explanatory variables. The model explains the data very well. The results of two alternative approaches suggest that offering the option of buying the tickets in advance has had an isolated positive effect on attendance for the associated teams.

The Demand for Environmental Quality: An Application of Hedonic Pricing in Golf

Limehouse, F. F., Melvin, P. C., McCormick, R. E. — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:18:22 PST

The analysis uses an exhaustive golf course database that contains over 100 golf course variables on more than 15,000 golf courses in the United States combined with data from the Audubon International Cooperative Sanctuary Program to examine the market setting of environmental certification on golf courses. Using the Rosen (1974) two-stage estimation technique, quality-adjusted structural demand and supply equations for golf are estimated. A standard hedonic pricing model shows a substantial price premium for environmentally certified Audubon International golf courses. Additional results suggest that the increase in marginal benefits of certification is approximately equal to the increase in marginal costs.

The Myth of Scheduling Bias With Back-to-Back Games in the NBA

Kelly, Y. J. — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 06:28:27 PDT

The National Basketball Association (NBA) league office determines the playing schedule for its member teams and in doing so assigns an unequal number of games played on consecutive nights (back-to-back games). Although NBA coaches privately complain of a bias in the scheduling of these types of games, a study of five seasons of data show that no bias exists. Although differences in the number of back-to-back games do result in a slight variation in competitive balance, one positive externality is that these type games reduce travel costs by millions of dollars per year.

The Effect of Incentives on Sabotage: The Case of Spanish Football

Corral, J. d., Prieto-Rodriguez, J., Simmons, R. — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:37:40 PDT

A growing literature examines adverse behavior as unintended consequences of incentives. We test Lazear’s hypothesis that states that if rewards were dependent solely on relative performance then an increase in rewards would induce agents to engage in sabotage activity to reduce rivals’ output. We test this hypothesis using the natural experiment of a rule change in Spanish football, the increase in points for winning a league match from two to three. We find, consistent with Lazear’s hypothesis, that teams in a winning position were more likely to commit offences punishable by dismissal of a player after this change.

Reply to Comment on "Identification of Segments of Soccer Clubs in the Spanish League First Division with a Latent Class Model"

Barros, C. P., Corral, J. d., Garcia-del-Barrio, P. — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:37:39 PDT

Estimating Attendance at Major League Baseball Games for the 2007 Season

Lemke, R. J., Leonard, M., Tlhokwane, K. — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 21:47:34 PDT

Using games from Major League Baseball’s 2007 season, individual game attendance is estimated using censored normal regression with home-team fixed-effects. Included in the model are several factors affecting attendance, such as divisional and interleague rivalries, that to date have been omitted from the literature. The relationship between attendance and game characteristics is shown to be fundamentally different between small market and large market teams. Attendance is also shown to steadily increase as the probability that the home team will win the game increases, which stands in contrast to the uncertainty of outcome hypothesis that predicts that attendance will eventually decrease if the home team’s chance of winning the game gets too large.

Can We Be Satisfied With Our Football Team? Evidence From Spanish Professional Football

Gonzalez-Gomez, F., Picazo-Tadeo, A. J. — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 23:07:52 PDT

This article assesses the sporting performance of Spanish professional football teams at competition level, namely, League, King’s Cup, and European competitions (Champions League and Union of European Football Associations [UEFA] Cup). Then, the gap between the result obtained by a team at the end of a season and that expected according to its potential is used as a proxy of the degree of satisfaction that fans should feel: the narrower the gap the greater the level of satisfaction. Regarding methodology, Data Envelopment Analysis techniques and directional distance functions are used. Results reveal that most teams perform rather differently across competitions, the lower average performance corresponding to the King’s Cup.

Altitude or Hot Air?

Chumacero, R. A. — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:48:56 PDT

This article uses several econometric models to evaluate the determinants of the outcomes of the World Cup Qualifying matches played in South America. It documents the relative importance of home-field advantage and other factors. Contrary to popular belief, altitude appears not to be an important factor behind the outcome or score of a match.

A Consistent Weighted Ranking Scheme With an Application to NCAA College Football Rankings

Fainmesser, I., Fershtman, C., Gandal, N. — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 23:22:21 PDT

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college football ranking, in which the so-called national champion is determined, has been plagued by controversies the last few years. The difficulty arises because there is a need to make a complete ranking of teams even though each team has a different schedule of games with a different set of opponents. A similar problem arises whenever one wants to establish a ranking of patents or academic journals, etc. This article develops a simple consistent weighted ranking (CWR) scheme in which the importance of (weights on) every success and failure are endogenously determined by the ranking procedure. This consistency requirement does not uniquely determine the ranking, as the ranking also depends on a set of parameters relevant for each problem. For sports rankings, the parameters reflect the importance of winning vs. losing, the strength of schedule, and the relative importance of home vs. away games. Rather than assign exogenous values to these parameters, we estimate them as part of the ranking procedure. The NCAA college football has a special structure that enables the evaluation of each ranking scheme and hence, the estimation of the parameters. Each season is essentially divided into two parts: the regular season and the postseason bowl games. If a ranking scheme is accurate, it should correctly predict a relatively large number of the bowl game outcomes. We use this structure to estimate the four parameters of our ranking function using "historical" data from the 1999-2003 seasons. Finally, we use the parameters that were estimated and the outcome of the 2004-2006 regular seasons to rank the teams each year for 2004-2006. We then calculate the number of bowl games whose outcomes were correctly predicted following the 2004-2006 season. None of the six ranking schemes used by the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) predicted more bowl games correctly over the 2004-2006 period than our CWR scheme.

Quit Behavior of Professional Tennis Players

Geyer, H. — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 23:44:06 PDT

The effect of income and performance on quit behavior is analyzed for professional tennis players. By means of players' data from the 1985 season until the 2007 season of the ATP-Tour, a stratified Cox regression shows that a higher annual prize money and better performance (measured for three different performance indicators: highest ranking position per year as well as games won and titles won per year) reduce quit behavior.

Competitive Balance in the National Football League After the 1993 Collective Bargaining Agreement

Lee, T. — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 23:44:05 PDT

In the large literature on issues related to competitive balance, studies tend to find no significant effect of structural changes, such as changes in league rules, on parity. However, the 1993 collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the National Football League owners and players included several innovations that might be expected to affect competitive balance. The present note measures interseasonal parity as the impact of previous season’s winning percentage on current season’s winning percentage and finds that the 1993 CBA had the effect of increasing competitive balance.

On the Price and Income Sensitivity of the Demand for Sports: Has Linder's Disease Become More Serious?

Loyland, K., Ringstad, V. — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 04:56:43 PDT

This study presents some results for household demand for sports in Norway. The results provide a firm basis for concluding that the demand for sports is income elastic. However, because both sports events and own sports activities are time-consuming, they may be subject to Linder’s disease, which is due to a shadow value of leisure increasing with income. This implies a negative bias in the income elasticity as estimated by us. The calculations suggest that the bias has become bigger in the period analyzed, that is, Linder’s disease has become more serious for sports over time.

Brazilian Football: What Brings Fans to the Game?

Madalozzo, R., Villar, R. B. — Wed, 06 May 2009 00:09:12 PDT

This article aims to identify variables that influence public attendance at football matches in Brazil, and how these variables affect decision management. Deriving a demand curve for public attendance at football stadiums in the Brazilian Football League, this article highlights four main explicative variables: stadium infrastructure, team performance, expected quality, and uncertainty. Data from over 1,800 matches are presented in an econometric model, using ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and in panel data form. The results reflect a series of variables that influence attendance, such as ticket price and local derbies, and the role of promotional strategies in distributing tickets is revealed.

Competitive Balance and Match Uncertainty in Grand-Slam Tennis: Effects of Seeding System, Gender, and Court Surface

del Corral, J. — Wed, 06 May 2009 00:09:11 PDT

This article tests whether the increase in seeded players in tennis grand-slam tournaments from 16 to 32 in 2001 led to decreased competitive balance. In doing so, two alternative measures of competitive balance for single-elimination tournaments are proposed based on the performance of seeded players. Likewise, the differences in competitive balance due to gender and court surface are also analyzed. Additionally, using data from tennis grand-slam matches from 2005 to 2008, this article analyzed the determinants of ex post match level uncertainty with probit models.