Socio-Economic Determinants of Sports Performance: An Empirical Investigation among the Countries of the World

Abstract

The present study has explored socioeconomic determinants of sports performance among the world's countries. The countries' sports performance has been measured using the total number of gold, silver, and bronze medals. The weights of gold, silver, and bronze medals have been assigned 4, 2, and 1, respectively. Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, health, education, and population determine sports performance. The education and health index proposed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) has been used as a proxy for education and health. The influence of regions was captured by using dummy variables. Balanced panel data of 113 countries that participated in all Olympic events from 1972 to 2022 with four-year intervals have been used. However, a separate empirical analysis has been made for 80 countries that attained at least one gold, silver, or bronze medal from 1972 to 2022. Three econometric models have been estimated for each case by applying a fixed and random effect approach. Hausman test has been applied to identify the appropriation of fixed effect and random effect models. Using descriptive statistics, we have found that GDP per capita, education, health, and population are positively and significantly associated with sports performance. Results of dummy variables indicate that the European region has better sports performance than Asia, Australia, America, and Africa. Improvement in GDP per capita, education, and health has been suggested as a strategy to improve sports performance.