Current Studies
02/26/2025
The Underrated Impact of NBA Bench Production
Basketball, whether at the NBA level or any other, is structured to highlight individual greatness. Some sports, like football or soccer, include significantly more participants active at once than basketball, diluting one player’s impact. In hockey, even the best players can play for approximately one-third of the game. In baseball, the stars may or may not come to the plate — or be available to pitch — in critical situations.
02/13/2025
The Fall of An Empire: How The NHL’s Player Base is Shifting Away From Canadian Dominance
When the 4 Nations Faceoff began on Wednesday, it was the first time since the 2016 World Cup that the NHL’s best players competed for their countries.
The tournament's limited field — just Canada, Sweden, Finland, and the United States — means plenty of the league’s top talents will be absent. Still, it is the first opportunity to evaluate the balance of power in the sport in almost a decade.
01/24/2025
How Victor Wembanyama's Year 2 Progress Compares to Great NBA Big Men
Victor Wembanyama turned 21 on January 4, but he’s already considered one of the great talents in the NBA, a possible face of the game, and a player with a legitimate chance to build a GOAT case.
01/21/2025
Serie A Goalkeepers Lead Europe in Penalty Shot Save Percentage
Penalty kicks can make or break a match, putting both shooter and goalkeeper under immense pressure. Over the last five seasons (2020/21–2024/25), we collected data on penalty shootouts in five major European leagues—the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1—to see which league’s goalkeepers come out on top.
01/10/2025
Saquon Barkley In the 2,000-Yard Club: Analyzing His Place Among NFL's Greatest Rushing Seasons
NFL fans missed out on witnessing a record chase in the final week of the 2024 regular season when the Philadelphia Eagles opted to rest Saquon Barkley when he was 101 yards away from breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record, which has stood since 1984.
12/23/2024
NHL Goaltender Volatility: How Goalies Replicate Elite Seasons
This research provides a definition for an elite goaltending season based on games played, save percentage (SV%), and goals saved above average (GSAA).
Even goaltenders who produce elite seasons are hard to count on to perform at an extremely high level over a longer period of time.
12/20/2024
Single Sports Kids Are At Much Higher Risk for Injuries
Youth sports specialization has become increasingly common, with many young athletes focusing on a single sport year-round in pursuit of success. While this approach can yield short-term benefits, it poses significant risks for physical health, development, and long-term well-being.
12/12/2024
Physicality and NHL Playoff Success: How Size, Hits, and PIM Relate to Postseason Results
Over the last ten years, teams with more hits than their playoff opponents during the regular season have won less than 50% of the postseason series.
12/04/2024
NHL's Hardest Shooters: How Shot Velocity Impacts Scoring
Using NHL Edge data from 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24, we identified a cohort of elite shot-speed players who produced shots with a velocity that ranked in the top 10 in the league at their position.
These players' seasons were evaluated based on statistics that measured scoring output and efficiency, such as goals and shooting percentage and goals and shooting percentage on shots further from the net.
11/28/2024
Quarterback Caution Leads to Team Success in NFL
From the start of the National Football League's 2018 regular season to November 23, 2024, we analyzed ten prominent NFL quarterbacks (QBs) and their aggressiveness percentages to learn if this style of play translates into more wins.
11/15/2024
The NHL's Shift in Draft Priorities: Is Size Becoming Less Valued?
Selecting players in the National Hockey League (NHL) Draft has always been an inexact science. Players perceived as elite prospects often wash out, and there are notable cases of late-round selections breaking through as superstars.
10/29/2024
NHL's Fastest Players: How Elite Speed Helps Drive Superstar Performance
Using NHL Edge data from the 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24 we identified a cohort of ‘elite speed’ players who reached maximum speeds that ranked in the top-10 in the league at their position.
These players' seasons were evaluated by individual output statistics, like goals and assists, as well as possession metrics such as Corsi and on-ice expected goal rate.
10/24/2024
Why Gambling Remains Illegal in 11 States
It’s likely that gambling has been a popular pastime in the United States since the nation was born, but as it comes out of the shadows, we’re getting a clearer idea of just how many Americans take part — or are at least accepting of it.
10/16/2024
Betting on Engagement: The Influence of Sports Betting on Viewership
When legal sports gambling started to become the norm in the United States it was widely assumed it would help driver interest and ratings.
After all, when sports fans are financially invested in an outcome it’s intuitive that they would tune in to see what happens, and there is data to support this idea from the rise of fantasy sports in years past.
09/30/2024
The Harmfulness of Gambling Addiction 1.2 - Gambling Addiction vs. Drug Addiction
Addiction has traditionally been understood within the framework of substance use disorders, characterized by compulsive behaviors and neurochemical changes in the brain. However, behavioral addictions, such as gambling disorder (GD), challenge these conventional models and demand a broader understanding of addictive processes.
09/19/2024
AI in Online Gambling: Opportunities, Risks, and Ethical Dilemmas
The rise of artificial intelligence in recent years has had a profound impact on a variety of fields.
It has had effects ranging from turning a company that was once best known for high-level graphics cards — NVIDIA — into the world’s most valuable company in June and creating a crisis in the world of academia.
09/04/2024
How The 2024 US Election Will Impact Sports Betting Legislation
On November 5 millions of American voters will go to the polls to decide on who they want to control their government from the top down.
09/03/2024
The Harmfulness of Gambling Addiction 1.1 - A Comparative Analysis with Substance and Behavioral Addictions
Gambling addiction, characterized by compulsive gambling behaviors, shares many features with other addictions, both substance-related and behavioral. This research series provides a comprehensive analysis of the harmful effects of gambling addiction and compares them with other addictions, such as substance use disorders (e.g., alcohol, drugs) and behavioral addictions (e.g., internet gaming disorder, sex addiction).
07/29/2024
A Hidden Epidemic? Demographics, Psychological Characteristics, and Betting Attitudes of Sports Bettors in the US
The rapid legalization of sports betting across the United States has significantly increased online betting activities, leading to a rise in gambling-related problems such as addiction and financial instability. This research investigates the core demographics of sports bettors, their psychological characteristics, betting attitudes, and the impact of marketing strategies on gambling behavior.
06/06/2024
Rigid Vs. Flexible Self-Control: Why We Struggle to Adapt and Lose More Money in Online Gambling
Understanding the dynamics of rigid versus flexible self-control and cognitive control failures is key to managing impulses and addiction disorders including online gambling. In North America where online gambling is available at our fingertips, these insights are extra important.
About Our Research
At RG, we dig into the insights hidden in sports data. Our research is at the heart of our mission to advance knowledge, engage fans, and provide industry stakeholders with data-driven perspectives to inform sports understanding and decision-making.
Research Areas
Our research covers sports data analysis across multiple key areas, bringing deeper insight into sports:
- Sports Data and Analytics: We investigate data on athlete performance, measuring metrics that impact game outcomes, player development, and team strategies.
- Behavioral and Psychological Research: Understanding sports' mental and behavioral aspects can help us see the full picture of athlete performance and fan engagement.
- Political and Regulatory Research: Our political research covers governance, compliance, and policy, looking at how these factors shape the sports industry and impact stakeholders.
- Economic and Market Analysis: We present the economic side of sports, including financial performance, sponsorships, and market trends.
- Social & Cultural Impact Analysis: Sports touch society in many ways. Our data-driven approach looks at fan engagement trends, demographic influences, and cultural shifts so fans and industry leaders can understand how sports connect communities.
- Technological Innovations in Sports: Technology is changing sports through data analytics, AI, and virtual and augmented reality. Our research shows how these innovations improve performance metrics, fan engagement, and the overall sports experience.
