Athlete Pay and Competitive Balance in College Athletics

Brian Mills and Jason Winfree

Review of Industrial Organization, 2018, vol. 52, issue 2, No 3, 229 pages

Abstract: Abstract In this paper we analyze the argument—which has been used by both the National Labor Relations Board and the National Collegiate Athletic Association—that unionization and/or player pay will hurt competitive balance in college sports. We present a theoretical analysis of universities that recruit athletes and examine the assumptions that are needed for player compensation to decrease competitive balance. We also empirically illustrate the differences in balance between professional and college sports. Given the theoretical and empirical analysis, we argue that unionization and/or player pay is unlikely to hurt competitive balance.

Keywords: College athletics; Competitive balance; Player pay (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11151-017-9606-8

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