Publications

October 1996 (Revised April 1997)
Case

Team New Zealand (A)

By: Marco Iansiti and Alan D. MacCormack

The case describes the development process used by Team New Zealand to design their two yachts for the 1995 America's Cup. During development, the team makes extensive use of simulation and physical prototyping to improve the initial design concept. As they approach... View Details

Keywords: Product Design; Design; Product Development; Sports; Ship Transportation; Research and Development; Situation or Environment; Decisions; Sports Industry; New Zealand

April 2021 (Revised April 2021)
Case

Project Restart: Deciding the Future of English Football

By: Nour Kteily and Deepak Malhotra

In March 2020, the English Premier League football (soccer) season was suspended partway through due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Two months later the season remained in limbo, with a looming deadline to decide whether to attempt to complete the season or curtail it—and... View Details

Keywords: COVID-19 Pandemic; Sports; Health Pandemics; Decision Making; Fairness; Values and Beliefs; Business and Stakeholder Relations; Motivation and Incentives; Outcome or Result; Perception; Negotiation; Sports Industry; United Kingdom

01 Jun 1996
News

Keepers of the Flame

It's an international celebration of sport and goodwill whose humble beginnings date back two millennia. Today, with the vastly expanded modern Games, putting on the Olympics has become as much of a test of management skill as athletic... View Details

Keywords: Garry Emmons

February 1999 (Revised August 2004)
Case

I Lost My Volvo in New Haven: Tennis Event Sponsorship

By: Stephen A. Greyser, Brian R. Harris and Mitchell Truwit

Focuses on event management and sponsorship from the perspective of the event owner (rather than that of the sponsorship company). Describes in depth the search by one of the tennis tournaments on the professional circuit for a principal sponsor. Detailed economics of... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Communications; Decision Choices and Conditions; Management; Product Positioning; Television Entertainment; Sports; Partners and Partnerships; Sports Industry

01 Mar 2023
News

Action Plan: Casting Call

in our 90s understand, a few aches and pains are a small price to pay for being with family and friends,” he observes. And no doubt the ongoing challenge of fly-fishing keeps him young: “It’s the best sport of all,” Berkley asserts,... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna; hobbies; balance; meaning; longevity; aging; Paper Manufacturing; Manufacturing

22 Feb 2022
News

The Well-Healed Athlete

Illustration by Robert Neubecker Sports injuries are a business concern for Clara Wu Tsai (MBA 1993). She and her husband, Joe Tsai, are owners of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets; the WNBA’s New York Liberty; and the men’s lacrosse team, the San... View Details

Keywords: April White; Health and Personal Care Stores; Retail Trade

01 Jun 2002
News

Up to the Challenge: Ken Baumgartner - Sticking with It

played a pivotal role in the negotiations between his hockey peers and the league's owners during a grueling, 104-day lockout. In 1999, he moved seamlessly from player to assistant coach with the Bruins and began to look for ways to transfer the leadership abilities he... View Details

Keywords: Amy Burton; hockey; education; family; career paths; personal priorities; Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Arts, Entertainment; Mining

01 Feb 2016
Research & Ideas

CEOs and Coaches: How Important is Organizational 'Fit?'

match. Consider the case of Chip Kelly and the Philadelphia Eagles. At the start of the 2015 season, team owner Jeffrey Lurie praised Kelly; according to a December 31 article by Philadelphia Daily News sports reporter Les Bowen, Lurie... View Details

Keywords: by Boris Groysberg & Abhijit Naik; Sports

01 Mar 2005
News

In the Blood

Clay with 2004 Kentucky Derby champion Smarty Jones. To leave Lexington’s Bluegrass Airport, exit on Man O’ War Boulevard, named for one of history’s greatest Thoroughbred champions. It’s a little like taking the new Ted Williams Tunnel from Boston’s Logan Airport —... View Details

Keywords: Hanna, Julia; horse racing; Animal Production and Aquaculture; Agriculture; Performing Arts, Spectator Sports, and Related Industries; Arts, Entertainment

01 Dec 2009
News

No Sweat

When he’s not researching empirical asset pricing, behavioral finance, and portfolio choice, Assistant Professor Lauren Cohen’s fondness for heavy lifting moves into the physical realm. Here he works out with an 800-pound tire while training for a powerlifting... View Details

Keywords: weightlifting

March 2025
Case

YouTube: Bidding for NFL Sunday Ticket

By: Anita Elberse and Crystal Yao

In December 2022, Erin Teague, a senior director and the global head of sports, movies and shows at YouTube, technology giant Alphabet Inc.’s video- sharing platform, received the news that Sundar Pichai, the chief executive officer of Alphabet and its subsidiary... View Details

Keywords: General Management; Entertainment; Media; Sports; Marketing; Management; Business Strategy; Bids and Bidding; Sports Industry; Sports Industry

01 Nov 2012
News

First and Goal

pointed to the dangers of youth football, specifically the cumulative effect of blows to the head (even of subconcussive force) in still-growing children. The Downtown Giants board, at Swearengin’s direction, resolved that it would identify and then consult with the... View Details

Keywords: Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles; Finance

01 Dec 2016
News

Carving a Niche

1996) grew up skiing in the mountains of Idaho but switched to snowboarding in his 20s. Skiing was for moms and dads. Snowboarders did cool tricks and sported hip-hop-style pants and parkas with graffiti graphics. “It didn’t have to be... View Details

Keywords: Julia Hanna

July 2003 (Revised October 2003)
Case

Ottawa Voyageurs, The

By: Thomas J. DeLong, Scott Baldwin, Chris Strong, Andrew Feng, Eliza Moody and David Ager

Manuel Tertuliano, head coach of a professional soccer club, must make some difficult decisions about the compensation of six of his players. Specifically, he must decide how to allocate $850,000 among these six players in a way that will benefit his team, which has... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Compensation and Benefits; Performance; Motivation and Incentives; Sports; Groups and Teams; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; Canada

01 Dec 2016
News

Case Study: Sweat the Technique

Science Entrepreneurship at HBS, cites studies showing that even mild dehydration can compromise performance by as much as 29 percent. Nix has garnered interest from both endurance athletes—which include about 30 million dedicated runners in the United States alone—and... View Details

Keywords: Dan Morrell

28 Apr 2014
Research & Ideas

Football Stars Debate ‘The Social Capital of the Savvy Athlete’

industry. The forum began with a discussion about the marketing power of social media, but quickly evolved into a conversation about race issues in the sports entertainment industry. 'unbelievable Platform' All acknowledged that Twitter... View Details

Keywords: by Carmen Nobel; Sports

29 Sep 2008
Research & Ideas

How Economics May Lead to Better Football Games

from schoolchildren to attorneys—and even carries the potential to help sustain life itself. Sarah Jane Gilbert: What led you to research football teams? Are you a sports fan? Al Roth: I'm a matching fan. Q: What is matching, and why... View Details

Keywords: by Sarah Jane Gilbert; Sports

01 Sep 2017
News

In My Humble Opinion: Career Peak

that was very much of interest to a lot of outdoor and sports companies.” On her first ultramarathon, in Madagascar: “I didn’t have proper running shoes, I had no equipment, and I definitely wasn’t trained. So the race was an adventure.... View Details

Keywords: April White

August 1988 (Revised November 1989)
Case

Reebok International Ltd.

By: John A. Quelch

Reebok executives are reviewing the company's advertising and promotion programs for the second half of 1988. These include sponsorship of the 1988 Summer Olympics and a rock concert tour organized by Amnesty International. In addition, Reebok is launching a new... View Details

Keywords: Marketing Strategy; Music Entertainment; Advertising Campaigns; Sports; Sports Industry; Sports Industry; Sports Industry