Economics/Soccer Sources Worth Following

Hi again. Today I’ll be sharing a few economics/soccer voices and news outlets worth following.

While traditional news organizations provide reliable coverage of on-field events in the world’s biggest leagues and competitions, I’m focusing here on sources that reliably provide insightful reporting on the intersection of soccer and economics.

1. The brains behind Soccernomics 

As I mentioned in my introductory post, one excellent resource on the topic is “Soccernomics,*” a 2009 book written by the journalist Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski, an economist. Kuper is a columnist for the Financial Times and is active on Twitter. Szymanski, an economics professor the University of Michigan, writes a blog on sports economics for Forbes.

Both Kuper and Szymanski are highly knowledgeable — and active online.

2. The Economist‘s Game Theory blog

Another good resource for economics/soccer insight is Game Theory, a blog published by the venerable UK magazine The Economist. The blog addresses the ways in which soccer and other sports collide with business, politics, and science.

Two recent blog posts and stories from the magazine that the blog has pointed to, for example, include pieces on Manchester United’s IPO and the bankruptcy of the popular Scottish club Rangers FC. In stories like these, The Economist uses its characteristic analysis and wit to describe the world of sports and business.

3. Gabriele Marcotti

Soccer journalist Gabriele Marcotti, who writes for The Wall Street Journal and Sports Illustrated, among other outlets, covers all aspects of The Beautiful Game and often provides analysis of business and economics issues.

Marcotti — who also happens to be a Columbia Journalism School grad — typically writes pieces that eschew the hyperbole seen so often in soccer coverage. Two of his recent WSJ stories include a look at the lack of transparency regarding soccer players’ salaries and the business and regulatory structure of the German domestic league. (Marcotti is also active on Twitter.)

* Apologies, again, to England fans. But for the record, the subtitle of Soccernomics is: “Why England Loses, Why Germany and Brazil Win, and Why the U.S., Japan, Australia, Turkey–and Even Iraq–Are Destined to Become the Kings of the World’s Most Popular Sport.”