Does economic theory have anything to offer a coach in the World Cup? And if it did, would Diego Maradona have cared?
So asks the Times’ Economix blog in a post titled “What Economists Can Teach World Cup Coaches,” by Jack Ewing. As Ewing points out, German economists have noted a pattern by which particular soccer tactics that are indomitable for a certain period of time are eventually overcome and ultimately made obsolete by a new set of tactics. That pattern, they theorize, follows the evolution of financial strategies over time — and may explain the current success of conservative, defense-based footballing tactics. To read all about it, go to the Economix blog.
