Mathletics: The Hidden Calculations Behind Sports Success

While every stadium and every classroom may seem miles away, the truth is every dunk, every goal, and every touchdown is influenced by the same force that sends rockets to space: math. Math plays a major role in the world of sports, through statistics, probabilities, and many other aspects. Players, coaches, analysts, and fans all take math into account when playing or watching sports, whether it be intentionally or unintentionally. For example, fans use math in sports through fantasy football, a game based entirely on statistics. In addition, as technology advances, math gets incorporated more and more into the sports industry, through better sensors and machines that keep track of certain aspects of the game that were not even considered beforehand. For example, soccer recently introduced a new addition to their refereeing system, VAR, that allows a ref off the field to watch different angles of the game that other referees may not have been able to see. This article is going to explore how math plays a role in sports through statistics and probabilities.

VAR being used in a soccer match

In sports, statistics offer an important tool for evaluating players’ performance and understanding the dynamics of the game. By calculating a player's averages and consistency, coaches and fans can better evaluate how good or bad a sports player is. Statistics also allow players to better prepare for their competition by predicting how a player is going to play, and doing their best to combat that. They can also use statistics to improve themselves. Let's say we have a professional basketball player. He can use statistics to determine where he makes most of his shots on the court and can use those numbers to determine where he needs more practice. A golf player could do the same, by using statistics to determine where they gain the most strokes and how they can strive to improve. Statistics plays a large role in sports by allowing players to evaluate themselves and their competition, enabling them to enhance their practice and better predict opponents.

Probabilities are also a big part of the sports world. The entire sports-betting industry is developed on probabilities, as bettors determine if they think players will do better or worse than their projected performance. Probabilities help players decide what they should and should not be doing, whether it be how often they should be shooting or passing, how often they should be playing aggressively versus passively, and many other decisions players have to make.

Coaches also rely heavily on probabilities when it comes to big decisions like whether to kick a field goal or go for a first down. Having probabilities and statistics can give teams a huge advantage in sports, an advantage that might be the difference between a win and a loss.

A chart that uses mathematical probabilities to show when teams should go for it on 4th down

One great example of probability in sports is shown with the Oakland Athletics (a major league baseball team), which is popularly known through the movie Moneyball. In the movie, the As were entering the offseason after a devastating loss in the playoffs, a lot of contracts expiring, and a tight budget for the upcoming season. The general manager, Billy Beane, teamed up with an economics major from Yale, and with him the team signed a lot of undervalued players by using an analytical probability system to evaluate players. The team went on to tie the MLB record at the time with 20 consecutive wins and ended up winning the west. The team went on to lose in the playoffs, but Moneyball is a perfect example of the power of math in sports.

Characters in the movie Moneyball using statistics to determine which players to sign

At first glance, math and sports do not seem very alike, but by taking a closer look, we can see that math is a huge part of sports. Teams that use math to their advantage can greatly benefit their chances of success.