Let's meet as usual: Do games played on non-frequent days differ? Evidence from top European soccer leagues

Balancing the allocation of games in sports competitions is an important organizational task
that can have serious financial consequences. In this paper, we examine data from 9,930 soccer
games played in the top German, Spanish, French, and English soccer leagues between
2007/2008 and 2016/2017. Using a machine learning technique for variable selection and
applying a semi-parametric analysis of radius matching on the propensity score, we find that
all four leagues have a lower attendance as the share of stadium capacity in games that take
place on non-frequently played days compared to the frequently played days. In addition, we
find that in all leagues except for the English Premier League, there is a significantly lower
home advantage for the underdog teams on non-frequent days. Our findings suggest that the
current schedule favors underdog teams with fewer home games on non-frequent days.
Therefore, to increase the fairness of the competitions, it is necessary to adjust the allocation
of the home games on non-frequent days in a way that eliminates any advantage driven by the
schedule. These findings have implications for the stakeholders of the leagues, as well as for
coaches and players.