Analysis of Efficiency and Competitiveness in Professional Football Competitions. Perspective of Organizers and Professional Clubs
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This document analyses sports competitions in Spanish and European football. Football
industry requires applying empirical methodology in order to optimize decisions. On the one
hand, in the sports area, focused on professional clubs. On the other one, to the organizers of
the competitions. From a linear programming model, an analysis of the level of efficiency of
football competitions and their market behaviour is carried out. We will observe how the direct
confrontation competitions, such as the Spanish Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions
League (UCL) are the most efficient in relation to the long-term tournaments corresponding
to the 4 major European leagues. The data reveals that according to the competition format,
the most valuable players do not always guarantee sporting success, and that the uncertainty
in the result is the key variable in the efficiency and level of tournaments competitiveness.
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