Title: Player contracts, athletic and financial performance of the Greek football clubs

Authors: Panagiotis E. Dimitropoulos; Vasilios Limperopoulos

Addresses: Department of Sport Management, University of Peloponnese, Orthias Artemidos and Plataion str., P.C. 23100, Sparta, Greece ' Department of Sport Management, University of Peloponnese, Orthias Artemidos and Plataion str., P.C. 23100, Sparta, Greece

Abstract: The scope of this paper is to examine the relation between the athletic and financial performance of Greek football clubs and how the investment in player contracts (playing talent) impacts this relation. We selected a sample of 20 football clubs participating in the three professional divisions of the national championship, which refers to the period from 2004/05 to 2008/09. By applying a panel data methodology, results indicated that the higher the investment in player contracts is, the more successful is the club on the field. However, as the investment in player contracts by football managers is increased, the club is becoming more unprofitable and insolvent suggesting that these decisions are not based on economic standards, a fact which verifies previous arguments that football clubs in Europe aim to maximise the athletic performance and not the financial. Useful policy implications and avenues for future research are also provided.

Keywords: Greece; football clubs; soccer clubs; player contracts; athletic success; financial performance; player investment; playing success; profitability; insolvency.

DOI: 10.1504/GBER.2014.060181

Global Business and Economics Review, 2014 Vol.16 No.2, pp.123 - 141

Received: 17 Oct 2011
Accepted: 21 Aug 2012

Published online: 16 Jun 2014 *

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