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Does the Presence of Professional Football Cause Crime in a City? Evidence from Pontiac, Michigan

Author

Listed:
  • Joshua C. Hall

    (West Virginia University, Department of Economics)

  • Hyunqoong Pyun

    (West Virginia University, Department of Economics)

Abstract

We empirically explore the relationship between the National Football League (NFL) and crime using daily panel data from Detroit. We exploit the natural experiment of the Detroit Lions movement from Pontiac MI to downtown Detroit in 2002 to examine the impact of NFL games on crime in a jurisdiction. Pontiac is used as a treatment city and other suburban cities are used as a comparison group. Employing a triple difference-in-difference approach, we find little to no change in crime on a home game day in Pontiac compared to other suburban cities. There is no difference in crime between the football season and off-season, among the groups, after the Lions moved. While not conclusive, our results are suggestive that professional football does not create additional crime except for larceny.

Suggested Citation

  • Joshua C. Hall & Hyunqoong Pyun, 2016. "Does the Presence of Professional Football Cause Crime in a City? Evidence from Pontiac, Michigan," Working Papers 16-02, Department of Economics, West Virginia University.
    • Handle: RePEc:wvu:wpaper:16-02
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    Cited by:

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    3. Hyunwoong Pyun & Jeeyoon Kim & Torsten Schlesinger & Luca Matto, 2020. "Positive Externalities from Professional Football Clubs in the Metropolitan Rhine-Ruhr, Germany: Trickle-Down Effects Associated with Promotion and Relegation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-12, October.
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    6. Dennis Mares & Emily Blackburn, 2019. "Major League Baseball and Crime: Opportunity, Spatial Patterns, and Team Rivalry at St. Louis Cardinal Games," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 20(7), pages 875-902, October.

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