Papers by Andrew Zimbalist
Journal of Sports Economics, Nov 1, 2002
Journal of Sports Economics, 2002
Public subsidies for sports stadiums and arenas are often justified as a means to boost the local... more Public subsidies for sports stadiums and arenas are often justified as a means to boost the local economy. The argument relies on historical local economic impact multipliers that misrepresent the effect of consumer expenditures on professional sports. Sports expenditures are subject to extraordinary consumer substitution away from other local expenditures, and they suffer unusually large first round leakages from the local economy because, inter alia, players export their earnings to the locale of their permanent residence. This note illustrates the extent of such leakages using information about the permanent residence of players in the National Basketball Association. While 93% of average employees live in the area where they work, only 29% of NBA players do the same. The illustration shows that a standard local economic impact multiplier exaggerates the stimulative effect of sports expenditures by over 400%.
The Sabermetric Revolution, 2014
The Sabermetric Revolution
Comparing Economic Systems, 1984
Some comparative economists have discussed that there is a tendency in each economic system to ma... more Some comparative economists have discussed that there is a tendency in each economic system to make a gradual transition toward the other. This proposition is known as convergence. It is observable in the real world that there is no pure market or pure planned economies. Most are mixed to one degree or another. It is apparent that pressures develop in planned economies to make more use of the market mechanism and, conversely, pressures develop in market economies to make greater use of planning. However, these pressures seem to advance at some times and retreat at others. Even if they advance more than they retreat, it is unclear how far they can proceed without challenging the basic premises of the existing system. It is also impossible to develop a satisfactory test of the convergence theory. It develops a more dynamic perspective—approaching a country's economic system as having its own internal logic and made up of political, social, cultural, and economic characteristics. The systems that have tended to be more economically successful have managed to evolve economic and other institutions that are consistent with one another and with economic growth. Although economies can certainly learn from one another's policies, institutions, and experiences, simple transplants are fraught with difficulties.
International Handbook on the Economics of Mega Sporting Events
Choice Reviews Online, 2014
Whither College Sports, 2021
For the 65 colleges and universities that participate in the Power Five athletic conferences (Pac... more For the 65 colleges and universities that participate in the Power Five athletic conferences (Pac 12, Big 10, SEC, ACC, and Big 12), the football and men's basketball teams are highly visible. While these programs generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue annually, very few of them turn an operating "profit." Their existence is thus justified by the claim that athletic success leads to ancillary benefits for the academic institution, in terms of both quantity (e.g., more applications, donations, and state funding) and quality (e.g., stronger applicants, lower acceptance rates, higher yields). Previous studies provide only weak support for some of these claims. Using data from 2006-2016 and a multiple regression model with corrections for multiple testing, we find that while a successful football program is associated with more applicants, there is no effect on the composition of the student body or (with a few caveats) funding for the school through donations or state appropriations.
Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs, 1998
This study, by three economists at the Center for the Study of the Americas in Havana, has played... more This study, by three economists at the Center for the Study of the Americas in Havana, has played a pivotal role in the ongoing discussion in Cuba about how to restructure the system of economic management and production while still retaining the revolution's goals of economic and social justice. This is the first English translation of this important work, published in Spanish in 1995 and revised in 1996. The study includes an analysis of the internal, as well as the external, structural constraints on the Cuban economy in the 1990s, detailed analysis of the options for monetary and fiscal reform and proposals for the development of what might be termed a mixed economy, organized according to socialist principles. There is also a chapter discussing some of the responses, both from within Cuba and from abroad, to the original publication. The introduction by Ruth Pearson discusses the significance of this book for the economic and political debates currently facing Cuba. Julio Carranza Valdez and Pedro Monreal Gonzalez are researchers at the Centro De Estudios de la Economia Internacional, Universidad de la Habana, and Luis Gutierrez Urdaneta still works at the Centro de Estudios sobre America in Havana, Cuba. Ruth Pearson is a senior lecturer in development studies at the University of East Anglia and professor of women and development at the Institute of Social Studies, the Hague.
International Journal of Financial Studies, 2019
For the 65 colleges and universities that participate in the Power Five athletic conferences (Pac... more For the 65 colleges and universities that participate in the Power Five athletic conferences (Pac 12, Big 10, SEC, ACC, and Big 12), the football and men’s basketball teams are highly visible. While these programs generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue annually, very few of them turn an operating “profit.” Their existence is thus justified by the claim that athletic success leads to ancillary benefits for the academic institution, in terms of both quantity (e.g., more applications, donations, and state funding) and quality (e.g., stronger applicants, lower acceptance rates, higher yields). Previous studies provide only weak support for some of these claims. Using data from 2006–2016 and a multiple regression model with corrections for multiple testing, we find that while a successful football program is associated with more applicants, there is no effect on the composition of the student body or (with a few caveats) funding for the school through donations or state appropri...
The American Economist, 1995
The purpose of this paper is to test several competing hypotheses of the causes of improving comp... more The purpose of this paper is to test several competing hypotheses of the causes of improving competitive balance in major league baseball. Various researchers have previously attributed this improvement in competitive balance to the introduction of free agency, a narrowing of team market sizes, and a compression of baseball talent. Two models of competitive balance are presented and estimated in this paper, with results varying depending on the measure of competitive balance employed. If the degree of competitive balance is measured by the distribution of team winning percentages within a single season, none of the competing hypotheses is supported. If competitive balance is measured by the correlation of team winning percentages across seasons, however, all three of the competing hypotheses are supported.
The Antitrust Bulletin, 2009
This paper examines the history and the economics of the Bowl Championship Series, in the context... more This paper examines the history and the economics of the Bowl Championship Series, in the context of all college bowl games. The evidence suggests that the BCS restricts entry to the FBS conferences that are outside the BCS cartel and that the revenue distribution from the bowl games is highly skewed in favor of the six BCS conferences. The resulting revenue advantage enables the BCS conferences to perpetuate their historical predominance. The BCS selection process is based on a conceptually confused and biased system. The paper discusses the rationale proffered by the BCS for its system and then considers the antitrust arguments against the BCS. It concludes that the outcome of any antitrust claim would be uncertain, which together with the involved expense and time render problematic any antitrust strategy to break up the BCS cartel. Instead, the paper concludes with a call for a legislative solution that would open up the national championship to all FBS conferences, increase output, redistribute revenues more evenly throughout Division I and the rest of the NCAA, and provide more opportunities to college athletes. What was good news for the Bowl Championship Series was bad news for virtually all the other bowl games and the non-BCS conferences in Division IA. As the four BCS bowl games came increasingly to be associated with a national championship, interest in the other bowls waned. Accordingly, TV ratings and attendance for the other bowl games have suffered. Although many fans welcomed the heightened prospect of a national championship game in college football, the Super Alliance came under sharp attack and close scrutiny from many observers. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, for instance, was concerned that his home state school, the University of Louisville, was being excluded from a reasonable opportunity to participate in the most prestigious and lucrative bowl games. The University of Louisville belonged to the Conference USA (C-USA) which, along with three other Division IA conferences 7 and eleven independents at the time, were not invited to join the Bowl Alliance. Senator McConnell first raised the issue in 1993 when Louisville had a 7-1 record and a top ranking, but was automatically excluded from the leading bowls. The U.S. Justice Department commenced an inquiry and the Alliance agreed to open up for consideration two of the six Alliance bowl slots "to any team in the country 7 These three conferences are: Big West, Western Athletic (WAC), and Mid-American. Today, the University of Louisville belongs to the Big East, a BCS Conference, and Senator McConnell's interest in an antitrust investigation seems to have waned.
The Australian Economic Review, 2006
Round and Ross Williams provided helpful comments on an earlier version.
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Papers by Andrew Zimbalist