Could the Premier League’s New Normal offer a glimpse of hope for Norwich? Anyone who has had a football bet on a Saturday afternoon will be familiar with the old adage that towards the end of the season upsets happen as teams fighting for survival are more motivated than mid-table secure teams. Of course if …
Tag Archives: sport
Will sporting integrity outweigh Premier League club self-interest?
Analysis of the outcome of different ways to end the 2019/20 Premier League season suggests some clubs might have very different objectives for upcoming talks on restarting football. As the Premier League meets to find a resolution to the season, almost everyone is hoping there can be some way to finish the remaining games of …
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Why are top Premier League teams earning so many points?
The most successful Premier League team of the decade has undoubtedly been Manchester City, with four league titles and two FA cups. But another interesting stat is how they came to earn 63 more points than their nearest rivals in those years. The graph below shows the cumulative points won by the Premier League champions …
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Stats suggest an England World Cup win
England beating New Zealand in the Rugby World Cup semi-final was a ‘shock’ that even had non-rugby fans talking on Saturday night. But looking at some tournament performance figures was it really such a shock? The graph below shows tournament points scored per minute and points conceded per minute for the four semi-finalists (only against …
The next wave of cycling superstars
I started putting work together on this blog by asking the question ‘are we seeing the rise of the disruptor in cycling?’ In the last two years there had been Grand Tour winners aged 22, 26 and 26 and a number of exciting young riders animating races. It felt like a new era was emerging …
Endorsements have rocketed but still return on investment
Reading the excellent Shoe Dog by Phil Knight gives a new perspective on sports giant Nike. Usually when you think of Nike you think of a global corporate giant that controls every facet from design to manufacturing to marketing. But reading Knight’s memoir of where it all started you get the origin story. Nike the …
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Small Cities – Big Winners
Since Padraig Harrington won in the British Open in 2007, Irish golfers have won 20% of golf’s Majors. This is quite a haul for a country with a population of 6.6m people and begs the question of how country demographics helps talent develop? Small is beautiful Research from Canadian academic Jean Cote and colleagues provides …
Shifting patterns in the ownership of pro-cycling teams
Comparing companies sponsoring cycling teams at the end of the last century with the shirts being pedalled around France twenty years later shows how the sport is changing. Ultimately the key to sustainability is to concentrate on cycling as a cultural ‘event’ rather than winners. The rise of the US and UK teams has not …
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Are Premier league clubs gambling with shirt sponsorship
The recent decision by bookmakers William Hill to close more than 400 shops will reduce revenues to the sport of horse racing by an estimated £50-£60 million. The story is a cautionary tale for several football clubs about the need to plan in advance. The rise and fall of Fixed Odds Betting Terminals The story …
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