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This study provides a review of the literature on sporting production functions with an emphasis on different input-output specifications and alternative estimation procedures. Empirical evidence is reported for English association football on the robustness of estimates of coaching efficiency to changes in estimation methods and the definition of team performance and playing talent inputs. A measure of player quality based on predicted start-of-season transfer values is developed. It is found that the estimation of coaching efficiency is sensitive to the choice of time-invariant efficiency models versus time-varying and inefficiency effects models. It is also found that the results are little affected by different measures of team performance but are highly sensitive to the use of an ex post financial expenditure input measure. Ex ante input measures based on start-of-season player characteristics or predicted transfer values are recommended as more appropriate on both theoretical and empirical grounds.

This paper presents a statistical analysis of patterns in the incidence of disciplinary sanction (yellow and red cards) taken against players in the English Premier League over the period 1996-2003. Several questions concerning sources of inconsistency and bias in refereeing standards are examined. Evidence is found to support a time consistency hypothesis, that the average incidence of disciplinary sanction is predominantly stable over time. However, a refereeing consistency hypothesis, that the incidence of disciplinary sanction does not vary between referees, is rejected. The tendency for away teams to incur more disciplinary points than home teams cannot be attributed to the home advantage effect on match results, and appears to be due to a refereeing bias favouring the home team.Keywords refereeing bias and inconsistency, English Premier League football, bivariate Poisson regression, bivariate negative binomial regression 1.

a b s t r a c tThis study considers the influences on agents' decisions in an international context. Using data from five seasons of European cup football matches it is found that referees favour home teams when awarding yellow and red cards. Previous research on referee decisions in national leagues has identified social pressure as a key reason for favouritism. While social pressure is also found to be an important influence in this study, the international setting shows that nationality is another important influence on the decision making of referees. In considering principal-agent relationships account needs to be taken not only of how agents (referees) decide under social pressure but also of how national identity shapes agents' decision making.

The problem of hidden action in organizations makes direct measurement of managerial performance problematic. But in English association football hidden action is unlikely to be as serious a problem because the owner observes the manager's performance each time the team plays. In this situation production frontier analysis may be used to measure managerial performance and analyze the variation in performance across managers in terms of manager human capital. Having some kind of prior affiliation with the club and achieving international recognition as a player are especially important. Overall, initial experience matters more than specific and general managerial experience. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This article provides estimates of technical efficiency for a panel of managers in English soccer's Premier League for the period 1992 to 1998. In contrast to other studies of sporting team production, efficiency is estimated at the level of the individual manager rather than the club. Fixed and random effects models are used to generate managerial efficiency scores assuming that efficiency is both time invariant and time varying. The efficiency rankings of the different time invariant models are very similar. In contrast, the temporal structure and the estimation procedures of the time-varying models produce very different results. There is evidence that managerial efficiency has fallen over the sample period.

The second edition of this popular book presents a detailed economic analysis of professional football at club level, with new material included to reflect the development of the economics of professional football over the past ten years. Using a combination of economic reasoning and statistical and econometric analysis, the authors build upon the successes and strengths of the first edition to guide readers through the economic complexities and peculiarities of English club football. It uses a wide range of international comparisons to help emphasize both the broader relevance as well as the unique characteristics of the English experience. Topics covered include some of the most hotly debated issues currently surrounding professional football, including player salaries, the effects of management on team performance, betting on football, racial discrimination and the performance of football referees. This edition also features new chapters on the economics of international football, including the World Cup.