The economics literature has long been divided regarding whether competing sports teams can achieve the same, efficient allocation of playing skills that a revenue-maximizing league monopolist would choose despite the external effects the teams impose on each other in their pursuit of athletic...

The analysis and evidence here suggest that the market for star athletes in professional sports could be subject to "destructive competition"--a competitive process that drives some participants from a market even though it is inefficient for them to leave. When pursuing a league championship,...