Intellectual Capital Efficiency and Business Performance: Empirical Evidence from the Professional Football Sector in Italy

This paper aims to explore the significance of intellectual capital (intangible assets) to firm performance in the context of professional football clubs. Specifically, it investigates whether the efficiency of intangible assets investments affect positively the sporting performance in a sample of Italian top-tier football clubs. The conceptual and analytical model underlying this study is the VAIC (Value Added Intellectual Coefficient) model pioneered by Pulic (1999; 2000a,b) which is intended to measure the extent to which firms create added value based on intellectual capital efficiency (ICE). Purpose. Through adaptations to the VAIC model, this paper aims to: 1) provide indicators suitable to measure ICE in the professional football sector; 2) to investigate empirically whether the efficiency of intangible assets investments (as measured by these indicators) is positively associated to sporting performance. Design/methodology/approach – This paper performs a quantitative analysis based on the statistical technique known as mixed-effects linear regression for longitudinal analysis. The analysis covers a time period of five years and specifically the sporting seasons from 2007 to 2012. Pratical Implications – The results from this study provides tentative evidence that intellectual capital efficiency is positively associated to sporting performance. To football club managers it stands to suggest that importance of ongoing investments in human capital and the need to nurture positive relationship with external stakeholders. Originality/value.. To our knowledge studies of the kind in the professional football sector are in actual short supply.