Referees and their assistants are faced with the challenge of making correct decisions in complex and high-speed game situations. Subconscious bias on the part of referees and the resulting systematic favouring of teams have already been shown many times in sports economics and impair fairness...

This study analyses the development of loan players in the German Bundesliga from 2010/2011 to 2021/2022, motivated by the increasing importance of player loans in professional football and upcoming FIFA rule changes to reduce loans. The study analyses 378 loan transfers and compares them with...

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to massive restrictions and changes in many areas of life, including professional sports. In football, many games were cancelled and then five instead of three substitutions were allowed with the unchanged maximum of three time-outs. This initially temporary, but...

We analyse changes in the National Football League (NFL) due to ghost games in 2020. The home bias disappears as expected. However, referee decisions do not seem to be relevant for this. There are also no significant results for semi-ghost games with a reduced number of spectators.

Because of the COVID-19-pandemic the men's first German football league (Bundesliga) had to finish the season 2019/20 with ghost games as spectators were not allowed in the stadiums. Comparing these games with the regular ones between the same teams before, we find that the normal advantage for...

This study analyses the development of loan players in the German Bundesliga from 2010/2011 to 2021/2022, motivated by the increasing importance of player loans in professional football and upcoming FIFA rule changes to reduce loans. The study analyses 378 loan transfers and compares them with...

Because of the COVID-19-pandemic the men’s first German football league (Bundesliga) had to take a break before it was permitted to finish the season 2019/20. However, only ghost games without spectators in the stadiums were allowed in this finishing phase. Comparing these 83 games without...

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to massive restrictions and changes in many areas of life, including professional sports. In football, many games were cancelled and then five instead of three substitutions were allowed with the unchanged maximum of three time-outs. This initially temporary, but...