SuperDebate · Recent round
Victor Matheson
Professor of Economics
College of the Holy Cross
Victor Matheson studies the economics of sports stadiums, mega-events, and gambling.
Biography
Victor
- Sports economics
- Public finance
- Stadium financing
Victor Matheson is a professor of economics at the College of the Holy Cross, where he has taught since 2004, with a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Minnesota. He edits the Journal of Sports Economics, has led the North American Association of Sports Economists, and co-authored The Economics of Sports.
He has studied stadium financing for over two decades, publishing on the economic impact of stadiums, Super Bowls, and the Olympics, and is a frequent media expert on whether public subsidies for professional sports facilities pay off. He teaches his students the Matheson Rule: move the decimal point one place left to find the true benefits of a mega-event.
He is also a working soccer referee in the NCAA and beyond, and has officiated at the professional level. His consulting pushback helped shrink a $1.35 billion taxpayer ask for a new Washington arena into a far smaller refurbishment — the kind of fight he has picked for twenty years.
Recent appearance
Public stadium financing
SuperDebate. Whether public money should finance professional sports stadiums
Rolnick argues stadium subsidies are a zero-sum national transfer; Matheson argues two decades of research show the public rarely gets its money back.
See the debate.
SuperDebate. Whether public money should finance professional sports stadiums
Rolnick argues stadium subsidies are a zero-sum national transfer; Matheson argues two decades of research show the public rarely gets its money back.
Holy Cross faculty profile (opens in a new tab)