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Stadium attendance demand during the COVID-19 crisis: Early empirical evidence from Belarus

Author

Listed:
  • J. James Reade

    (Department of Economics, University of Reading)

  • Dominik Schreyer

    (Wissenschaftliche Hochschule für Unternehmensführung (WHU))

  • Carl Singleton

    (Department of Economics, University of Reading)

Abstract

In this note, we consider early evidence regarding behavioural responses to an emerging public health emergency. We explore patterns in stadium attendance demand by exploiting match-level data from the Belarusian Premier League (BPL), a football competition that kept playing unrestricted in front of spectators throughout the global COVID-19 pandemic, unlike all other European professional sports leagues. We observe that stadium attendance demand in Belarus declined significantly in the initial period of maximum uncertainty. Surprisingly, demand then slowly recovered, despite the ongoing inherent risk to individuals from going to a match.

Suggested Citation

  • J. James Reade & Dominik Schreyer & Carl Singleton, 2020. "Stadium attendance demand during the COVID-19 crisis: Early empirical evidence from Belarus," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-20, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    • Handle: RePEc:rdg:emxxdp:em-dp2020-20
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dominik Schreyer & Sascha L. Schmidt & Benno Torgler, 2018. "Game Outcome Uncertainty in the English Premier League," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 19(5), pages 625-644, June.
    2. Dominik Schreyer, 2019. "Football spectator no-show behaviour in the German Bundesliga," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(45), pages 4882-4901, September.
    3. Schreyer, Dominik & Schmidt, Sascha L. & Torgler, Benno, 2016. "Against all odds? Exploring the role of game outcome uncertainty in season ticket holders’ stadium attendance demand," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 192-217.
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    9. Nicolas Scelles & Christophe Durand & Liliane Bonnal & Daniel Goyeau & Wladimir Andreff, 2013. "Competitive balance versus competitive intensity before a match: Is one of these concepts more relevant in explaining attendance? The case of the French football Ligue 1 over the period 2008-2011," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) halshs-00874478, HAL.
    10. Bryson, Alex & Dolton, Peter & Reade, J. James & Schreyer, Dominik & Singleton, Carl, 2020. "Experimental Effects of an Absent Crowd on Performances and Refereeing Decisions during COVID-19," IZA Discussion Papers 13578, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    11. J. James Reade & Dominik Schreyer & Carl Singleton, 2020. "Echoes: what happens when football is played behind closed doors?," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-14, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    12. N. Scelles & Christophe Durand & L. Bonnal & D. Goyeau & W. Andreff, 2013. "Competitive balance versus competitive intensity before a match: is one of these two concepts more relevant in explaining attendance? The case of the French football Ligue 1 over the period 2008–2011," Université Paris1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (Post-Print and Working Papers) halshs-02111054, HAL.
    13. J. James Reade & Carl Singleton, 2020. "Demand for Public Events in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of European Football," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-09, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    14. Tim Pawlowski & Georgios Nalbantis, 2015. "Competition format, championship uncertainty and stadium attendance in European football - a small league perspective," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(38), pages 4128-4139, August.
    15. N. Scelles & C. Durand & L. Bonnal & D. Goyeau & W. Andreff, 2013. "Competitive balance versus competitive intensity before a match: is one of these two concepts more relevant in explaining attendance? The case of the French football Ligue 1 over the period 2008--2011," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(29), pages 4184-4192, October.
    16. Nicolas Frevel & Dominik Schreyer, 2020. "Behavioral responses to terrorist attacks: empirical evidence from professional football," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(3), pages 244-247, February.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Carl Singleton & Alex Bryson & Peter Dolton & J. James Reade & Dominik Schreyer, 2021. "What Can We Learn About Economics from Sport during Covid-19?," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2021-01, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    2. Beiderbeck, Daniel & Frevel, Nicolas & von der Gracht, Heiko A. & Schmidt, Sascha L. & Schweitzer, Vera M., 2021. "The impact of COVID-19 on the European football ecosystem – A Delphi-based scenario analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    3. Matthew Olczak & J. James Reade & Matthew Yeo, 2020. "Mass Outdoor Events and the Spread of a Virus: English Football and Covid-19," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-19, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    4. Carl Singleton & J. James Reade & Dominik Schreyer, 2021. "A decade of violence and empty stadiums in Egypt: When does emotion from the terraces affect behaviour on the pitch?," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2021-21, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    5. J. James Reade & Dominik Schreyer & Carl Singleton, 2020. "Eliminating supportive crowds reduces referee bias," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2020-25, Department of Economics, University of Reading.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Attendance; COVID-19; Football/soccer; Spectator decision-making; public health;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty
    • D90 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - General
    • H12 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Crisis Management
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism
    • Z20 - Other Special Topics - - Sports Economics - - - General

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