AN EXPLORATION OF THE HALO EFFECT IN PROFESSIONAL SOCCER

A halo effect can lead to significantly biased and distorted judgments in numerous situations and settings in daily life. However, its impact has barely been researched in the sporting environment, although it might help a great deal in understanding how sport fans think and behave. This paper provides an empirical study based on two German soccer clubs, VfB Stuttgart and FC Bayern Munich, analyzing the presence of halo effects. The purpose of this study is to answer the question that is interesting for both theory and practice: Does a halo effect exist in professional soccer?