Sports Economics

For our Monday discussion of sports economics I would like you to take a look at a few short articles. My hope is to introduce you to what economic research looks like while at the same time having a little fun.

First off, don't let the statistics intimidate you; I will help to explain what everything means. Just keep in mind that ceteris paribus is an important assumption in economics. As mentioned in class, please print these out and highlight 2-3 sentences in each that you find interesting. You are able to access these articles for free anytime you are on a university computer or using TTUnet wifi. Also, you can log in to ScienceDirect from the library webpage and search for them there if you are not on campus.

Image from Sports Illustrated, Google images

What Does it Mean to Find the Face of a Franchise? Can you put a price on beauty? Economists can, and it turns out it even matters for football players (see photo to the left). This article shows that attractive quarterbacks are payed a premium compared to their more battered brethren.

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Returns to Education in Professional Football: Is waiting an extra year to go pro worth it? This article describes how much more a collegiate player can expect to earn in their rookie year if they stay in school for one extra year. 

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