An Academic Take on Sports Rivalries
Which rivalries are most intense? Can a team have more than one rival? What if the hatred isn’t returned? Two professors wanted answers.
When the Eagles face the Cowboys on Sunday and the Patriots face the Jets on Monday night, two fierce N.F.L. rivalries will be renewed. But where do they rank among all the bitter rivalries in North American sports?
Any list of “greatest sports rivalries” is bound to be disputed. Make such a list, and be prepared for an onslaught of comments like “How could you leave out Maple Leafs-Canadiens?” and “What about Toledo-Bowling Green?”
So two business professors set out to try to find the biggest rivalries on an objective, statistical basis.
“People don’t agree,” said B. David Tyler, an associate professor at Western Carolina. “Some people say you can only have one rival. We decided to get some clarity on the idea.”
Their data, collected at KnowRivalry.com, highlights some of the rivalries we know well, but also unearths some surprises.
The professors sought out hard-core fans of North American professional teams and college football teams and asked them to allocate 100 points among their most hated rivals. A Minnesota fan might allocate 50 points to Wisconsin, 40 to Iowa and 10 to Michigan. Other fan bases might target their dislike more sharply. A U.C.L.A. fan might give 80, 90 or even all 100 points to Southern California.
The top-scoring rivalries by these criteria are not necessarily the most famous, or the fiercest. Rather, they are the ones where neither team has any other significant rivals to steal away points. Topping the college football chart is Arizona-Arizona State. With no other serious rivals, Arizona fans gave an average of 89 points to their cross-state rival, and Arizona State averaged 83 points back.
