Victor Matheson
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victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson
@victor-matheson.bsky.social
580 followers 510 following 120 posts

Sports and gambling economist at College of the Holy Cross, former President of North American Association of Sports Economists, current VP of National Association of Forensic Economics, aging soccer referee

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Sociology 18%
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victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Feb 10
I am featured in the latest issue of the Holy Cross Magazine. If you want to read way more about Victor Matheson than you have ever imagined, this is your big chance!

magazine.holycross.edu/stories/meet...
Meet Dr. No
Economics Professor Victor Matheson, Ph.D., sets you straight on winning the lottery, the real cost of major sporting events and if there’s such a thing as a safe bet.
magazine.holycross.edu

Reposted by Rodney Fort

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 5d
I think 2 things here:

1. The chance that Trump forces FIFA to move games out of Boston or other blue cities is now 0%.

2. The winner of the prize is pre-ordained in order to get the answer in part 1.

Just total corruption (and for once I am not talking about FIFA!)

apnews.com/article/fifa...
FIFA announces new peace prize to be awarded at World Cup draw in Washington
FIFA has announced the creation of a peace prize, which it plans to award for the first time at the World Cup draw on Dec. 5 in Washington.
apnews.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 5d
I have always thought it would be fun to have definitive measure of the signature item of each stadium - like garlic fries in SF, fish tacos in SD, brats in WI. So, if brats are 16% of sales in WI compared to 2% of sales nationwide - it's measure would be an 8. How does that compare nationwide.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 12d
I asked everyone I could at the rally I was at, and no one could tell me where to sign up for my check.

Being a member of the Economics and Accounting Department at my college, I even filled out a W-9 ahead of time!

Reposted by Rasmus K. Storm

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 12d
Somehow I sound much more authoritative when translated into German!

And yeah, the NBA gambling scandal is a big enough deal to get attention across the pond.

open.spotify.com/episode/6qQs...
Basketball - NBA: Nach der Enthüllung des Betrugsskandals
open.spotify.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 14d
It will take more than a few bad headlines for sports leagues to turn away from the deluge of gambling money.

I have to admit I feel a bit star-struck to be one of two experts quoted along with Michael Lewis of Moneyball and Liar's Poker fame.

www.cnn.com/2025/10/25/b...
How sports gambling has become crucial to leagues’ bottom lines | CNN Business
Do you think that the NBA gambling scandal will cause leagues to put some distance between themselves and sports gambling? Don’t bet on it.
www.cnn.com

Reposted by Brad R. Humphreys

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 18d
All I know is that it is a lot cheaper to hear me talk about ticket prices on NPR's Morning Edition today than it is to buy tickets to any sporting events nowadays.

www.npr.org/2025/10/23/n...
Sports ticket prices are getting more expensive — and pricing out many fans
For sports fans, there's nothing as exciting as going to see your team play. But what was once an affordable form of entertainment is becoming increasingly more expensive and pricing some loyal fans o...
www.npr.org

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 18d
So, they screwed up the stadium design in a way that prevents any large concerts.

That being said, no large concerts were going there anyways. No real band wants to play outdoors at a MiLB park when venues like Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston or even Indian Ranch in Webster are available.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · 19d
I am shocked, shocked I tell you, to find out that the Worcester MiLB baseball stadium has not lived up to its economic expectations!

www.telegram.com/story/news/l...
Report: Another deficit projected for Polar Park fund this year
A report from the city solicitor says the amount owed by the Polar Park Ballpark District Improvement Financing fund will soon exceed $2 million.
www.telegram.com

Reposted by Steve Peers, Victor A. Matheson, Sanford F. Schram , and 2 more

just-jack-1.bsky.social
Just Jack @just-jack-1.bsky.social · 19d
Mamdani hasn’t been elected yet and he’s already driving criminals out of New York.

Reposted by Brad R. Humphreys

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Oct 3
Happy to be featured on the latest episode of Freakonomics Radio discussing the crazy(???) idea of the NFL and NCAA merging and forming a promotion/relegation league.

freakonomics.com/podcast/the-...
The Merger You Never Knew You Wanted - Freakonomics
The Merger You Never Knew You Wanted - Freakonomics
freakonomics.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Oct 2
I am passing up a B-52s/Devo concert to attend this

“Insights into Educational Inequality” better be as much a banger as “Whip It” or “Love Shack”!

Reposted by Victor A. Matheson

dynarski.bsky.social
Prof Dynarski @dynarski.bsky.social · Sep 30
Giving a talk Holy Cross this week

Take that, Sister Carmelina

myhc.holycross.edu/mcfarlandctr...
Susan Dynarski / Insights into Educational Inequality - McFarland Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture
Susan Dynarski, an economist and Patricia Albjerg Graham Professor of Education at Harvard University, explains how the use of large-scale datasets and quantitative methods of causal inference in h...
myhc.holycross.edu

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 24
If only Al Gore instead of GWB had been appointing SC Justices in the 2000s…

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 19
Why is everyone buying lottery tickets? I will tell you on @marketplace.org!

www.marketplace.org/story/2025/0...
Why is everyone buying lottery tickets?
With $103 billion spent on tickets in 2023, big jackpots and economic stress continue to fuel America’s lottery habit.
www.marketplace.org

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 15
Even if the WNBA has racked up operating losses of $500 million, the Mohegan Tribe alone has just earned a $315M capital gain by buying the CT Sun for $10M in 2003 and receiving a $325M bid to sell them this summer.

That alone covers over 1/2 of the league's "losses."

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 14
What I can't believe is legal is a government appointee using his role as director of the FHFA to target political opponents by selectively investigating Democratic lawmakers and appointees.

Imagine the outcry if Obama or Biden had done that to Republicans.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 10
I don't know why anyone would trust a (reverse)carpetbagger like you to know anything about the Worcester sports market.

It's just too bad there aren't any decent sports economists in Worcester who could have given the city decent advice about the stadium.

Reposted by Victor A. Matheson

jcbradbury.com
J.C. Bradbury @jcbradbury.com · Sep 10
Gosh, if only City officials had been warned forcefully and repeatedly by many knowledgeable experts that this is exactly what would happen.
Polar Park's second inning: Almost five years into a 35-year project, WooSox are still drawing fans, but key parcels are underutilized
Since a tense November meeting between Worcester Redevelopment Authority and key ballpark district stakeholder Madison Properties, not much has changed in terms of groundbreakings or sales at Madison-...
www.wbjournal.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 9
Here's a good article showing how far Trump has split MAGA and traditional business Republicans. AEI, a wildly conservative traditional thinktank, is talking about how to improve electric cars. Trump is talking about how to eliminate them.

www.aei.org/research-pro...
www.aei.org

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 9
But to be fair, Steve Ballmer living out his midlife crisis by buying a sports team with his billions is probably better than Elon Musk living out his midlife crisis by destroying democracy.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 9
Good job by the state of Illinois understanding the basics of stadium finance. While you ***might*** be able to argue for local subsidies, there is no way the state makes anything simply moving a stadium from one location in the state to another.

frontofficesports.com/bears-withou...
Bears, Without State Funding, Officially Pivot Stadium to Suburbs
The Bears have declared their days along the downtown Chicago lakefront as numbered, announcing plans for a new stadium in Arlington Heights.
frontofficesports.com

Reposted by Victor A. Matheson

jcbradbury.com
J.C. Bradbury @jcbradbury.com · Sep 9
Sounds like a group well deserving of taxpayer assistance.
America’s Richest Sports Team Owners 2025
The top 20 owners on The Forbes 400 are worth $607 billion, up 20% from 2024. And with the cutoff rising to $10.1 billion, the club is more exclusive than ever.
www.forbes.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 9
Nope. Huge stadium subsidy for Boston’s new NWSL team.

I’ll try to think of some others…

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 3
If NFL stadiums cause great neighborhoods, why does the current neighborhood next to the new stadium need to be revitalized? It's been next to an NFL stadium for almost 30 years?

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 2
I wonder if any economists have studied the economic benefits of new stadiums…

Reposted by Brad R. Humphreys, Victor A. Matheson

dhnexon.bsky.social
Dan Nexon @dhnexon.bsky.social · Sep 2
She must *really* want that stadium.
Bowser welcomes federal law enforcement presence indefinitely
Bowser issued an executive order Tuesday requiring local coordination with federal law enforcement “to the maximum extent allowable by law.” The order gives no expiration date.
www.washingtonpost.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 2
So, the US military is now engaging in extrajudicial assassinations of citizens of countries we are not at war with?

That somehow sounds bad when I say it like that...

www.cnn.com/2025/09/02/p...
US military ‘conducted a lethal strike’ on alleged ‘drug vessel’ in southern Caribbean, Rubio says | CNN Politics
The United States “conducted a lethal strike” against an alleged “drug vessel” in the southern Caribbean, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday.
www.cnn.com

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 1
We’ll invite you to a seminar at Holy Cross sometime, and grab one afterwards.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Sep 1
Hah! Almost just stopped by Treehouse on my way home from Worcester. So add,

5) Day not ruined by random
visit from economist crashing your pleasant beer at Treehouse.

victor-matheson.bsky.social
Victor Matheson @victor-matheson.bsky.social · Aug 26
Firing the head of BLS. Dismantling the independence of the Federal Reserve.