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Game Outcome Uncertainty and Television Audience Demand: New Evidence from German Football

Author

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  • Schreyer

    (WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management, Vallendar, Germany)

  • Torgler Benno

    (CREMA – Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts and Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia)

  • Schmidt Sascha L.

    (WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management and CREMA – Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts, Brisbane, Australia)

Abstract

Despite its prominence in the economic literature, our knowledge regarding the role of game outcome uncertainty (GOU) in spectator decision-making is fairly limited. Even worse, studies testing the uncertainty of outcome hypothesis (UOH) by exploring TV demand for European football have further intensified the original ambiguity. In this paper, we revisit the role of GOU in spectator decision-making by testing the UOH with regard to two different sporting products: (1) domestic league and (2) knockout tournament games. Analyzing TV demand for almost 1,500 German football games, we find support for the UOH in league, though not in knockout tournament games.

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  • Schreyer & Torgler Benno & Schmidt Sascha L., 2018. "Game Outcome Uncertainty and Television Audience Demand: New Evidence from German Football," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 19(2), pages 140-161, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:germec:v:19:y:2018:i:2:p:140-161
    DOI: 10.1111/geer.12120
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    2. Luc Arrondel & Richard Duhautois, 2019. "Are French Football Fans Sensitive to Outcome Uncertainty?," Economie et Statistique / Economics and Statistics, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques (INSEE), issue 513, pages 5-26.
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    13. David Matesanz & Florian Holzmayer & Benno Torgler & Sascha L Schmidt & Guillermo J Ortega, 2018. "Transfer market activities and sportive performance in European first football leagues: A dynamic network approach," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(12), pages 1-16, December.
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