Philip Abel, Benedikt Datz

Abstract: As the market value of European football players increases and the football teams act with more professionalism, efficiency analyses to study input-output relations are central controlling tools for the teams. The Data Envelopment Analysis is a non-parametric approach that has been widely used to measure efficiency. The aim of this systematic review is to provide a synthesis of the literature on the use of this method in European football. In this review, the authors identify 49 studies that have been published in peer-reviewed journals over the past 15 years. The results of the review demonstrate that there are important differences in the choice of the examination object as well as the variables under consideration. Approximately 60% of the studies look at sporting performance, about 40% consider financial performance. The time horizon of studies is somewhat short: more than 60% considered three periods or less. Based on the findings of the review, the authors identify five recommendations that provide direction for future research.

Keywords: performance, sport teams, soccer, output, input

Citation: Abel, P., & Datz, B. (2019). Systematic review on the measurement of efficiency in European football via data envelopment analysis. International Journal of Sport Management, 20(4), 354-387.

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