The World Cup will be the biggest sporting event of 2002, but the Japanese and Korean governments are also hoping that it will be one of the biggest economic events of the year. Impact studies by respected economic research institutes predict a dramatic boost to GDP in both countries. This paper...

From a national perspective the Sydney Olympics were almost completely predictable. Statistical modelling shows that population size and income per head provide an almost faultless method for identifying medal totals. However, it is probably the discrepancies that are most interesting–...

Measured by attendance of football fans, the FA Cup is in decline. This paper reviews the evidence of this decline and suggests that the underlying cause may be the growing imbalance of competition in the Cup. The paper considers the drastic innovation that the FA introduced in 2001 to stem that...

The collapse of broadcaster ITV Digital owing £178m to the English Football League will cause, according to the League’s Chairman, the financial failure of up to fifty of the seventy two clubs. If this were to happen a major restructuring of English football would have to take place,...

The political constitutions of both the US and Europe provide no guidance on the role of organised sport in society. Without a proper set of rules politicians are finding sports issues increasingly hard to handle. In the US there is widespread concern at the commercial exploitation of major...

One of the most distinctive differences between team sports in Europe and North America is the institution of promotion and relegation. This paper looks into the history of why this institution developed in Europe but not North America, and considers what effects it may have on the competitive...