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Local Heroes and Superstars - An Empirical Analysis of Star Attraction in German Soccer

Author

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  • Leif Brandes
  • Egon Franck
  • Stephan Nuesch

    (Institute for Strategy and Business Economics, University of Zurich
    Institute for Strategy and Business Economics, University of Zurich
    Institute for Strategy and Business Economics, University of Zurich)

Abstract

Recent studies of the demand for sports clearly indicate that stars play an important role in promoting fan interest. However, on theoretical grounds it is controversial if a starÕs talent superiority and/or a starÕs popularity drive match attendance and hence increase gate revenues. Using longitudinal match attendance data of all clubs in the Þrst German soccer league in a 9-year period, the authors analyze star attraction of national super- stars and of so-called ÔÔlocal heroesÕÕ deÞned as the most valued players of teams with- out national superstars. We Þnd empirical evidence that these groups differ in the way they attract fans: whereas superstars enhance attendance both at home and on the road, the star attraction of local heroes is limited to home games. In addition, superstars attract fans by outstanding Þeld performances, whereas local heroes facilitate fan sup- port by mere popularity.

Suggested Citation

  • Leif Brandes & Egon Franck & Stephan Nuesch, 2006. "Local Heroes and Superstars - An Empirical Analysis of Star Attraction in German Soccer," Working Papers 0046, University of Zurich, Institute for Strategy and Business Economics (ISU), revised 2007.
    • Handle: RePEc:iso:wpaper:0046
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Daniel Högele & Sascha L. Schmidt & Benno Torgler, 2012. "The Influence of Superstars on Organizational Identification of External Stakeholders: Empirical Findings from Professional Soccer," CREMA Working Paper Series 2012-18, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    3. Rachel Scarfe & Carl Singleton & Paul Telemo, 2021. "Extreme Wages, Performance, and Superstars in a Market for Footballers," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(1), pages 84-118, January.
    4. Egon Franck & Stephan Nüesch, 2012. "Talent And/Or Popularity: What Does It Take To Be A Superstar?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 50(1), pages 202-216, January.
    5. Sung Il Hong & Michael Mondello & Dennis Coates, 2011. "An Examination of the Effects of the Recent Economic Crisis on Major League Baseball (MLB) Attendance Demand," Working Papers 1123, International Association of Sports Economists;North American Association of Sports Economists.
    6. Shoag, Daniel & Veuger, Stan, 2017. "Taking My Talents to South Beach (and Back)," Working Paper Series rwp17-019, Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government.
    7. Pamela Wicker & John C. Whitehead & Bruce K. Johnson & Daniel S. Mason, 2017. "The effect of sporting success and management failure on attendance demand in the Bundesliga: a revealed and stated preference travel cost approach," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(52), pages 5287-5295, November.
    8. Carrieri, Vincenzo & Principe, Francesco & Raitano, Michele, 2017. "What makes you "super-rich"? New evidence from an analysis of football players' earnings," Ruhr Economic Papers 681, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    9. Budzinski, Oliver & Kohlschreiber, Marie & Kuchinke, Björn & Pannicke, Julia, 2019. "Does music quality matter for audience voters in a music contest?," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 122, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    10. Chmait, Nader & Robertson, Sam & Westerbeek, Hans & Eime, Rochelle & Sellitto, Carmine & Reid, Machar, 2020. "Tennis superstars: The relationship between star status and demand for tickets," Sport Management Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 330-347.
    11. Egon Franck, 2010. "Private Firm, Public Corporation or Member’s Association Governance Structures in European Football," International Journal of Sport Finance, Fitness Information Technology, vol. 5(2), pages 108-127, May.
    12. Bortoluzzo, Adriana Bruscato & Iaropoli, Pedro Trindade & Machado, Sérgio Jurandyr, 2011. "Demand for Brazilian Soccer: A Censored Model Approach," Insper Working Papers wpe_237, Insper Working Paper, Insper Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa.
    13. Müller, Oliver & Simons, Alexander & Weinmann, Markus, 2017. "Beyond crowd judgments: Data-driven estimation of market value in association football," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 263(2), pages 611-624.
    14. Budzinski, Oliver & Pannicke, Julia, 2017. "Does popularity matter in a TV song competition? Evidence from a national music contest," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 106, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    15. Julianne Treme & Samuel K. Allen, 2009. "Widely Received: Payoffs to Player Attributes in the NFL," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 29(3), pages 1631-1643.
    16. Mario Lackner, 2016. "Teams as Superstars: Effort and Risk Taking in Rank-Order Tournaments for Women and Men," Economics working papers 2016-13, Department of Economics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    17. Brad R. Humphreys & Candon Johnson, 2020. "The Effect of Superstars on Game Attendance: Evidence From the NBA," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 21(2), pages 152-175, February.
    18. Bernd Frick, 2007. "The Football Players' Labor Market: Empirical Evidence From The Major European Leagues," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 54(3), pages 422-446, July.
    19. Frick, Bernd, 2012. "Die Entlohnung von Fußball-Profis: Ist die vielfach kritisierte 'Gehaltsexplosion' ökonomisch erklärbar?," Edition HWWI: Chapters, in: Büch, Martin-Peter & Maennig, Wolfgang & Schulke, Hans-Jürgen (ed.), Sport und Sportgroßveranstaltungen in Europa - zwischen Zentralstaat und Regionen, volume 4, pages 79-110, Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWI).
    20. Daniel Högele & Sascha L. Schmidt & Benno Torgler, 2012. "The Influence of Superstars on Organizational Identification of External Stakeholders: Empirical Findings from Professional Soccer," CREMA Working Paper Series 2012-18, Center for Research in Economics, Management and the Arts (CREMA).
    21. Bernd Frick & Young Lee, 2011. "Temporal variations in technical efficiency: evidence from German soccer," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 35(1), pages 15-24, February.
    22. Scott D. Grimshaw & Jeffrey S. Larson, 2021. "Effect of Star Power on NBA All-Star Game TV Audience," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 22(2), pages 139-163, February.
    23. Matt Andrews, 2015. "Being Special: The Rise of Super Clubs in European Football," CID Working Papers 299, Center for International Development at Harvard University.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    superstar effect; consumer demand; soccer; talent; popularity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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