Table 3. Characteristics of included sporting tournaments.
| Tournament | Outcome | Location of changed births | Tournament dates | Sport | Continent | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euros, European national teams (Fumarco & Principe, 2021) | Nine months following a performance improvement of one standard deviation, there was a 0.3% decline in births nine months on. | European country | 1960 to 2016 | Association football (soccer) | Europe | A unique dataset integrating metrics of national teams’ performance in 27 international football competitions with monthly birth rates at the country level for 50 European countries during a 56-year period. |
| 1998 FIFA World Cup (Masukume & Grech, 2016) | The sex ratio at birth did not increase nine months after the tournament in France. | N/A | 10 June to 12 July 1998 | Association football (soccer) | Europe | This was the second time France (and ninth time Europe) hosted this tournament. This was France’s first World Cup victory. |
| Spanish major league (la Liga) (Bernardi & Cozzani, 2021) | Nine months after an unexpected loss by the most popular la Liga soccer team in a Spanish province, there were 0.8% fewer births there for the studied years 2001–2015. Unexpected wins did not alter the number of births. | Spain, provinces | 2000/2001 to 2014/2015 la Liga seasons | Association football (soccer) | Europe | La Liga is the top level of Spanish football leagues for men’s professional football. |
| Super Bowl, NFL (Grech & Zammit, 2019) | ~Nine months following the first Sunday in February, there was an increased sex ratio at birth in 11/2006, 9/2009, 10/2009, 10/2010, 12/2010, 11/2011, 11/2013, and 12/2013.* | United States | 5 February 2006, 1 February 2009, 7 February 2010, 6 February 2011, 3 February 2013 | American football | North America | The Pittsburgh Steelers won in Michigan in 2006, Florida in 2009, the New Orleans Saints in 2010, the Green Bay Packers in 2011, and the Baltimore Ravens in Louisiana in 2013. |
| Super Bowl, NFL (Hayward & Rybińska, 2017) | There was no observable pattern of birth increases in winning counties nine months after the Super Bowl. In a similar vein, losing a Super Bowl was not associated with a changed birth pattern. | N/A | 1st Sunday of February 2004–2013 | American football | North America | In Texas in 2004 and Florida in 2005, the New England Patriots triumphed. In 2007, the Indianapolis Colts won in Florida. In Arizona in 2008 and Indiana in 2012, the New York Giants triumphed. |
| 2009 UEFA Champions League (Montesinos et al., 2013) | In February 2010, nine months following FC Barcelona’s victory in May 2009, there was a 16% increase in births. | Counties of Solsonès and Bages in Catalonia, Spain | May 2009 | Association football (soccer) | Europe | FC Barcelona advanced to the finals thanks to a late goal by Andrés Iniesta. By winning this competition, which had its final in Italy, FC Barcelona became the first Spanish team to win the treble (national league, national cup, and continental trophy). |
| 2010 FIFA World Cup (Masukume & Grech, 2015; Masukume, Grech & Scherb, 2016) | In February and March 2011, nine months after the tournament, the sex ratio at birth increased, and there were over 1,000 additional births. | South Africa | 11 June to 11 July 2010 | Association football (soccer) | Africa | This was the first time South Africa (and Africa) hosted this tournament. South Africa scored the tournament’s first goal, which was considered one of the best in the tournament. |
| 2016 UEFA Euros (McKenna, Znaczko & Morrison, 2019) | In March 2017, nine months after Northern Ireland’s participation in the tournament, there was a 2% increase in births. | Northern Ireland | 10 June to 10 July 2016 | Association football (soccer) | Europe | This was the first time Northern Ireland qualified for the UEFA Euros. Northern Ireland advanced to the knockout stages of this tournament held in France. |
| 2019 Rugby World Cup (Inoue & Mizoue, 2022) | In September 2020, 10 months after the tournament, there was an increase in the sex ratio at birth. | Japan, some prefectures | 20 September to 2 November 2019 | Rugby | Asia | This was the first time Japan (and Asia) hosted this tournament. Japan reached the quarterfinals for the first time, winning all four of their group matches. |
Note:
*
Now played on 2nd Sunday of February since 2022; FIFA, Fédération Internationale de Football Association; UEFA, Union of European Football Associations; FC, Futbol club; NFL, National Football League; N/A, Not Applicable.