The NFL and Game Theory
As of the last couple of years, the National Football League has attempted to make the league safer for players. Head injuries specifically have become a major concern, forcing players to cut their careers early due to long-term health concerns. So far, the NFL has worked to develop better equipment, change the yard lines for where a kick off begins from, and created penalties to avoid hard hits to the head. However, that still has not kept players from choosing not to play due to these concerns over player safety. Former players have even gone so far to say they would never let their kids play football. On September 14th, 2016, it was announced that the NFL would spend $100 Million to better ensure safety and take precautions against head trauma.
In terms of game theory, this is interesting for a number of reasons. The first thing to notice is that the NFL did not have to spend this money. Overall, the NFL will always have people who want to play in the league, and they will continue to be a very profitable organization, therefore, spending this amount of money was not necessary. However, the NFL deemed it both beneficial to them and players if they did. The NFL was under pressure from fans and players alike to keep injuries, especially long-term, down as much as possible. With many players choosing to retire early, and not even enter the league, this was best for them.
However, for players, the question becomes, was it most beneficial for them to play or to not play. Well that is where game theory truly comes in, as it depends on what the NFL chooses to do. If you draw out a set of objectives, you end up with this:
In this chart, you can see that the only Nash Equilibrium is if the players choose to play, and the NFL choose to spend the $100 Million to ensure player safety. This gives the fans the best of both worlds, as it lets them see their favorite players at all times, and helps to ensure they do not get injured, especially in the long-term. But if we look at the other options, we can see there is no other Nash Equilibrium.
If the players choose to not play, the NFL should still choose to spend the money to ensure the safety of the rest of the players in the league. As a matter of fact, the NFL’s dominant strategy is to spend the money, no matter what the circumstances, and no matter what the players do. Similarly, the dominant strategy for the players is to always play, as their payoff is highest in that scenario. The man reason for their being only one Nash Equilibrium is due to fan engagement. If the players choose not to play, this lowers fan engagement. Also, if the NFL chooses not to spend this money, the NFL loses fans, as players retire or choose not to play due to health concerns, and fans would be unhappy that they cannot watch their favorite players.
As evidenced, game theory can be found in many real world examples. In this case, it can be applied to the NFL and the players, as each work to ensure that player safety is a top priority, and that the fans remain happy and engaged in the league. Overall, when applying game theory to this example, you can see that the best strategy and the only Nash Equilibrium is for the players to play and the NFL to spend the money, as this keeps players and fans the most happy, and makes the NFL’s image look best.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/15/sports/football/nfl-concussions-100-million-roger-goodell.html?ref=sports&_r=0