I have spent four decades studying the sports business. A lifelong sports fanatic and a trained antitrust lawyer, I originally approached the problem as a straightforward cartel by owners. When consulting for a UK government investigation into sports, I learned how often owners “leave money on the table” because they can’t agree on how to divide things up, and how often league decisions are not responsive to consumer preference. The book is part of a career of analyzing how the structure of sports governance fails to meet the expectations of fans and the general public.
Although the collection of essays by a wonderful journalist is a great read, the key is the chapter Going Green about the innovative investment and community-oriented management of the Oakland Athletics baseball team by the Haas family and the principal owner’s son-in-law, attorney Roy Eisenhardt.
I loved the articulation of why sports are important and how owners should behave, and how front office management should manage.
Our book would be unnecessary if owners were likely like Walter Haas, Jr. and his family.
Offering a unique perspective on the ins and out of baseball, the author examines in detail the job of the catcher, pitchers' strategies, and the intricate play of infielders, discussing the best players of the past five seasons and their greatest moments
This book has nothing and everything to do with sports.
I loved it because Trebilcock recognizes that the way to innovate in the public interest is to buy off those who can oppose good new ideas.
My book demonstrates how owners selfishly reject proposals harmful to their own interests, and the only way to move forward is to figure out ways to overcome their objection. Trebilcock uses political examples that can be applied to sports.
Whenever governments change policies-tax, expenditure, or regulatory policies, among others-there will typically be losers: people or groups who relied upon and invested in physical, financial, or human capital predicated on, or even deliberately induced by the pre-reform set of policies. The issue of whether and when to mitigate the costs associated with policy changes, either through explicit government compensation, grandfathering, phased or postponed implementation, is ubiquitous across the policy landscape. Much of the existing literature covers government takings, yet compensation for expropriation comprises merely a tiny part of the universe of such strategies. Dealing with Losers: The Political Economy of…
Social Security for Future Generations
by
John A. Turner,
This book provides new options for reform of the Social Security (OASI) program. Some options are inspired by the U.S. pension system, while others are inspired by the literature on financial literacy or the social security systems in other countries.
An example of our proposals inspired by the U.S. pension…
I loved the clear and accessible way that a leading sports economist explains economic concepts to sports fans.
The explanation of why global soccer is characterized by continued dominance in each league (I loved how he shows this is not only true in France but in the Faroe Islands), and how he incorporates important economic insights to explain our current situation.
Modern soccer is big business. From the ill-received takeover of Manchester United by the Glazer family to Paris Saint Germain's current shopping spree for the best footballers on the planet, soccer finance has become an increasingly important part of the game.Barely a summer goes by now without a cherished club going into administration or a wealthy businessman funding a mid table team's ascension to Champions League competitor. Meanwhile, the twice-annual multi-million dollar merry-go-round of transfer season sees players (and now managers) signed for sums thought impossible just a decade ago. Understanding soccer finance has become essential for comprehending the beautiful…
Bud Selig was complete personality contrast with other successful sports league commissioners, such as the NBA’s David Stern or the NFL’s Pete Rozelle.
I love how Zimbalist demonstrates how Selig was incredibly successful for HIS league and HIS time by patiently overcoming owner objections to get them to act in the best interests of the entire league. I found it to be a perfect complement in the specific realm of sports to Trebilcock’s general work on overcoming parochial opposition to good initiatives.
"The season's best book so far." The Boston Globe Milwaukee Brewers owner Bud Selig faced tremendous opposition when he became acting commissioner of baseball. A longtime critic and observer of Selig, Andrew Zimbalist takes a balanced, insightful look at the governance of baseball before and during Selig's tumultuous reign, revealing how Selig redefined the commissioner's role and shepherded the transformation of baseball into a business. He explores how Selig brought the owners together as partners, analyzes the fairness and effectiveness of revenue sharing, and examines whether the best interests of the sport have been served. In the process, Zimbalist elucidates…
Social Security for Future Generations
by
John A. Turner,
This book provides new options for reform of the Social Security (OASI) program. Some options are inspired by the U.S. pension system, while others are inspired by the literature on financial literacy or the social security systems in other countries.
An example of our proposals inspired by the U.S. pension…
Although now quite old, I still think the wonderful journalistic description of Pete Rozelle’s success in what the author coined as “LeagueThink” to overcome the structural problems in sports identified in my book is a great model.
I knew David Harris by reputation as an anti-Vietnam War activist and singer Joan Baez ex-husband, but I found he pivoted to this topic with excellence.
Based on three years of research, extensive interviews, and confidential NFL documents, an investigative report documents the little-known power struggles that have recently reorganized the internal structure and politics of the football business
Still relevant today, the book provides a historical, legal, and economic analysis of the special loyalty sports fans have for their favorite clubs and how this trust is abused by sports owners and leagues.
My co-author and I propose two fundamental changes: put control of the sport in the hands of an independent ‘competition organizer’ who will act for the best interest of the whole sport rather than the parochial interests of owners, and to force owners to compete by importing the European system of promotion and relegation to punish owners who fail their fans’ trust by refusing to invest in on-field success.
