The Socio-Economic Determinants of International Soccer Performance
Journal of Applied Economics, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 253-272, November 2002
Posted: 19 Jul 2004
Abstract
This paper reports regression results identifying the variables influencing a country's performance in international soccer games. The results reveal that economic, demographic, cultural and climatic factors are important. In particular, inverted U-shape relationships are identified with respect to temperature and per-capita wealth. We also find a significant interaction between Latin cultural origin and population size, while both variables are individually insignificant. Explanations for our results are offered.
Keywords: Football, FIFA World Ranking, Latin culture
JEL Classification: L83, H50
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation