Wage and Employment Effects of the Olympic Games in Atlanta 1996 Reconsidered

We estimate the economic effects of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. Our difference in difference model checks for serial correlation and allows for a simultaneous test of level and trend effects, but otherwise follows HOTCHKISS, MOORE, & ZOBAY (2003) in this journal. We were not able to reconfirm their finding that the Games had significant positive employment effects. We do, however, reaffirm their result of no significant wage effects.Olympic Games, sports economics, mega events

From Periphery to Core: Economic Adjustments to High Speed Rail

This paper presents evidence that high speed rail systems, by bringing economic agents closer together, sustainably promote economic activity within regions that enjoy an increase in accessibility. Our results on the one hand confirm expectations that have led to huge public investments into high speed rail all over the world. On the other hand, they confirm theoretical predictions arising from a consolidate body of (New) Economic Geography literature taking a positive, man-made and reproducible shock as a case in point. We argue that the economic geography framework can help to derive ex ante predictions on the economic impact of transport projects. The subject case is the German high speed rail track connecting Cologne and Frankfurt, which, as we argue, provides exogenous variation in access to regions due to the construction of intermediate stations in the towns of Limburg and Montabaur.

Arenas vs. Multifunctional Stadia – Which Do Spectators Prefer?

Large sports stadia construction follows two different general concepts: (1) Mono-functional arenas which are specially suited for one sport exclusively and which are characterised by the absence of an athletic track. (2) Multifunctional sports stadia which can be used for different sporting or cultural events. Officials of clubs often argue that the atmosphere in an arena is significantly better than that of a multipurpose facility and that spectators prefer such an atmosphere. Estimated panel regressions with fixed effects show a significant positive effect of a mono-functional soccer stadium on spectator demand. Controlling for other demand determinants in the German professional soccer league, Bundesliga, an isolated effect of around 4,800 additional spectators a game can be found. This translates into a substantial increase of about 18.7% against the mean value of 25,602 spectators per Bundesliga game.Demand for sport, soccer, mono-functional arenas, multifunctional stadia

From Periphery to Core: Economic Adjustments to High Speed Rail

This paper presents evidence that high speed rail systems, by bringing economic agents closer together, sustainably promote economic activity within regions that enjoy an increase in accessibility. Our results on the one hand confirm expectations that have led to huge public investments into high speed rail all over the world. On the other hand, they confirm theoretical predictions arising from a consolidate body of (New) Economic Geography literature taking a positive, man-made and reproducible shock as a case in point. We argue that the economic geography framework can help to derive ex-ante predictions on the economic impact of transport projects. The subject case is the German high speed rail track connecting Cologne and Frankfurt, which, as we argue, provides exogenous variation in access to regions due to the construction of intermediate stations in the towns of Limburg and Montabaur.NEG; high speed rail; transport policy; market access; acces-sibility

GEOGRAPHY OF A SPORTS METROPOLIS

This study analyzes the sports infrastructure of Hamburg, Germany, from the residents’ perspective. Empirical evidence is provided using a micro-level dataset of 1,319 sports facilities, which is merged with highly disaggregated data on population, socio-demographic characteristics and land values. Based on implicit travel costs, locations’ endowment of sports infrastructure is captured by potentiality variables, while accounting for natural and unnatural barriers. Given potential demand, central areas are found to be relatively underprovided with a sports infrastructure compared to peripheral areas where opportunity cost in the form of price of land is lower. The determinants of spatial distribution vary systematically across types of sports facilities. Publicly provided open sports fields and sports halls tend to be concentrated in areas of relatively low income which is in line with their social infrastructure character, emphasized by local authorities. In contrast, there is a clear tendency for market allocated tennis facilities to follow purchasing power. Areas with higher proportions of foreigners are subject to relatively lower provision of a sports infrastructure, which contradicts the stated ambitions of planning authorities.PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE, SPORTS FACILITIES, SPORTS GEOGRAPHY

How to Win the Olympic Games – The Empirics of Key Success Factors of Olympic Bids

This paper examines the probability of the success of city bid campaigns on the basis of the quantified factors of a total of 43 bids for the Summer Olympic Games between 1992 and 2012. By using a model with the distance of the sporting venues to the Olympic Village, the local temperatures and unemployment rates, we can correctly predict the decision in 97 % of failed bids and in 60 % of successful bids.Olympic Games, Bidding process, Key success factors, Binary logistical regression

New Stadia and Regional Economic Development

Using the case of the new stadiums for the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany, this paper is the first multivariate work that examines the potential income and employment effects of new stadiums outside of the USA. This study is also the first work on this topic that conducts tests on the basis of a (serial correlation consistent) Difference-in-Difference model with level and trends. As a robustness check, we use the “ignoring time series information” model in a form that is modified for nonsynchronous interventions. We were not able to identify income or employment effects of the construction of new stadiums for the FIFA World Cup 2006, which are significantly different from zero. \Sports Economics, Regional Economics, Stadia Infrastructure, Difference-in-Difference Model

Should organizing premier-level European football be a monopoly? and who should run it? – an economists’ perspective

The controversy around the breakaway European Super League, set to conquer the UEFA Champions League, and the surrounding antitrust proceedings revive the academic discussion about the monopoly power of sport-internal governing bodies (like the UEFA), the justification for and limits of their powers, and potential abuses of their power. Against this background, we discuss how much monopoly is unavoidable in premier-level European football and how its powers can be limited and, thus, scope and incentives for power abuse may be reduced. We particularly find that championship management can be periodically assigned to third-parties (like the Super League organizers) by tender procedures, thus, creating a periodical competition for the market, fueling innovation incentives and strengthening the influence of fans’ preferences

From periphery to core: measuring agglomeration effects using high-speed rail

We analyze the economic impact of the German high-speed rail (HSR) connecting Cologne and Frankfurt, which provides plausibly exogenous variation in access to surrounding economic mass. We find a causal effect of about 8.5% on average of the HSR on the GDP of three counties with intermediate stops. We make further use of the variation in bilateral transport costs between all counties in our study area induced by the HSR to identify the strength and spatial scope of agglomeration forces. Our most careful estimate points to an elasticity of output with respect to market potential of 12.5%. The strength of the spillover declines by 50% ever 30 minutes of travel time, diminishing to 1% after about 200 minutes. Our results further imply an elasticity of per-worker output with respect to economic density of 3.8%, although the effects seem driven by worker and firm selection

Demand for TV broadcasts of UEFA Champions League games in Danish television – the impact of uncertainty of outcome, stardom, and local heroes

There are noticeable conceptual differences between competing concepts for organ-izing the highest level of European Football. One major conceptual controversy is concerned with the question whether fans have a stronger preference for (more) games between the top teams over a broad participation of less well-known clubs representing more of the regions in Europe or vice versa. Since sports economics theory offers explanations for both views, this paper takes an empirical approach and analyzes revealed fan preferences in a market outside of the Big-5 leagues. It examines the impact of uncertainty of outcome, market value as well as local heroes (domestic players & teams) as determinants of demand in national TV in Denmark. It uses representative panel data of national TV demand for UEFA Champions League games in Denmark from 2006/07-2018/19. We estimate a semi-logarithmic OLS regression model with team fixed-effects where the dependent variable is the natural logarithm of the average TV audience of UCL matches broadcasted in Denmark. We find that the presence of superstar clubs as measured by accumulated market value of players increases broadcast audience significantly, whereas the number of superstar players in a game did not. Matches including Danish clubs (domestic clubs) as well as the number of Danish players on a team’s roster (local hero players) show no robust effect on TV audience. Uncertainty of outcome increases TV demand in our model, supporting the UOH for TV audiences and furthering the discussion around diverging preferences between stadium attendance and TV demand