08-19-2021, 09:28 PM
https://phys.org/news/2021-08-absence-fa...occer.html
When some European elite football leagues returned to action last year amidst the pandemic, athletes played largely without crowds. These so-called ghost games offered researchers a rare opportunity to get into the heads of referees. What they found was that football officials—no longer pressured by fans—penalized only the home team with more yellow cards after fouls, with the apparent knock-on effect of severely dampening home-field advantage. The research was published in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living.
Scientists at the University of Salzburg in Austria analyzed nearly 1300 matches between the 2018-19 season with fans and 2019-20 season without fans, looking at statistics such as the number of issued cards and game results. They discovered that referees officiating in ghost games issued significantly more yellow cards to hometown players for fouls, while those awarded to visiting players remained virtually unchanged between seasons.
You know... this might not be such a bad thing. Obviously, I want crowds to be able to return as and when it's safe for them to do so - but, this is actually a positive side-effect... it feels fairer.
Though, I've often been fascinated by the home advantage, and what exactly causes it. Whether it's from not having to travel, being able to train in a familiar setting, feeding off a supportive crowd... and if this is anything to go by, then it looks like the latter is a significant component of it .
When some European elite football leagues returned to action last year amidst the pandemic, athletes played largely without crowds. These so-called ghost games offered researchers a rare opportunity to get into the heads of referees. What they found was that football officials—no longer pressured by fans—penalized only the home team with more yellow cards after fouls, with the apparent knock-on effect of severely dampening home-field advantage. The research was published in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living.
Scientists at the University of Salzburg in Austria analyzed nearly 1300 matches between the 2018-19 season with fans and 2019-20 season without fans, looking at statistics such as the number of issued cards and game results. They discovered that referees officiating in ghost games issued significantly more yellow cards to hometown players for fouls, while those awarded to visiting players remained virtually unchanged between seasons.
You know... this might not be such a bad thing. Obviously, I want crowds to be able to return as and when it's safe for them to do so - but, this is actually a positive side-effect... it feels fairer.
Though, I've often been fascinated by the home advantage, and what exactly causes it. Whether it's from not having to travel, being able to train in a familiar setting, feeding off a supportive crowd... and if this is anything to go by, then it looks like the latter is a significant component of it .
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