Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2025

Sports Economics (Face-to-Face)

ECON 3700-01

Course: ECON 3700-01
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2025
Department: ECON
CRN: 30179

Course Description

The study of sports economics is specifically an application of microeconomic theory and empirical analysis. By focusing on sports, students can see how the toolkit of economics can be applied to a subject the student already finds interesting. The study of sports economics also sheds light upon a host of important topics, including how to measure the productivity of a worker, whether or not workers are paid a wage consistent with their economic value, the impact of labor unions, racial discrimination, and the efficacy of public subsidies. (Fall) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Prerequisite(s): ECON 2010 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: D-

Required Texts

The readings will be from a manuscript that I will provide on Canvas titled:  A Short Course on Sports Economics (by Thomas Miceli). The Chapters in the outline below refer to this manuscript. There is also one article listed in the outline, which I will also provide on Canvas. 

The other books that students may consider acquiring (though not required) are: 

  • Stefan Szymanski, Playbooks and Checkbooks: An Introduction to the Economics of Modern Sports, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009.[1]
  • David Berri, Sports Economics, Worth Publishers, 2018.[2]

[1] This is an engaging, readable, and completely non-technical introduction to sports economics (and it’s fairly affordable). I highly recommend it to anyone wanting a thorough introduction to the field along with an excellent guide to the more technical literature.
[2] This book covers the introductory level of statistical (empirical) approaches to explore sports economics topics. Students who are interested in conducting hand-on research are encouraged to refer to this textbook as we go over the theoretical counterparts of Miceli’s manuscript in class. If time permits, I will demonstrate some empirical projects that I have advised in method classes of previous semesters (like Econ 385). 
 

Learning Outcomes

This course is divided into 3 modules (as the outline presents below). In the first part, students are expected to understand the different profiting patterns of teams and familiarize themselves with the application of fundamental optimization theory. Students will learn economic models of how the monopolist team optimizes their profit through reducing quantity, price discrimination, and quality differentiation.

Quality differentiation is also how players establish their competency against other contestants. This bridges the exploration to the second module, athletic competitions. Specifically, the conflict model and the theory of competitive balance will be introduced to demonstrate how the quality and integrity of sports competition are determined. 

In the last module, I will introduce miscellaneous topics such as Rule and Enforcement and the determination of salary. Students will learn theories including the Peltzman Effect, the Moneyball hypothesis. If time permits, I will also introduce the agent-principal problems. 

The first two modules are theory-intense where frequent use of derivatives can be expected (to deepen the economics that you have learned in Econ 110). The last module will be more discussion-oriented and contain some concepts for conducting empirical research on sports. Those who find the math part challenging may benefit from visiting the my student hours, and the math tutors from the SUU Tutor Center

Course Requirements

While the exact time commitment for the class will vary individually and over the semester, I recommend that you budget approximately three out-of-class hours for every class hour to complete the reading, assignments, homework, and project. I have designed the class so that it should be feasible to satisfactorily complete the requirements with approximately nine to twelve hours per week of time commitment. If you are spending more time than this on a regular basis, I encourage you to check in with me.

Course Outline

I.                    Introduction (on-court vs off-court objectives of Sports)                   Chapter 1 

II.                  The Business of Sports
A.     Teams as Firms                                                                  Chapter 2
B.      Pricing of Sporting Events                                                  Chapter 3
C.      Leagues as Economic Organizations                                    Chapter 4 

III.               Athletic Competition
A.     The Structure of Play                                                          Chapter 5
B.      Competitive Balance                                                          Chapter 6
Simon Rottenberg, “The Baseball Players’ Labor Market,” Journal of Political Economy, Vol. 64 (1956): 242-258.          

IV.               Empirical Analysis
A.     Rules and Enforcement                                                       Chapter 7
B.      Salary Determination                                                          Chapter 8         
C.      Player Contracts: Risk-Sharing and Incentives                      Chapter 9 (if time allows)                     

Note: the content and details of the syllabus is subject to change per the pace and situation of the semester.

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late submissions of assignments will receive a penalty of 10 points per day unless explained by a legitimate excuse notified on or prior to the submission day. Excuse later than the due day will not be accepted. As an extra incentive, one question on each exam will be similar to the homework problems. Class participation consists of regular attendance at lectures and active participation in discussions during the classes or office hours.  

Attendance Policy

The Zoom broadcast, as well as its recording available on Canvas, is only intended for excuses such as disease and travel, approved by the instructor. Since this course is primarily purported for in-person instruction, the student who choose to take the class via Zoom should be aware of and sustain the consequence of taking this option, including but not limited to technology glitch, compromised quality of expression, etc. I will check attendance once each week and missing attendance would cause missing important content, and negatively impact your performance.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

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As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

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Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

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You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

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Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.