Game location and officiating bias in English Club Cricket

One potential contributing factor to the commonly observed home advantage i n competitive sport is that officials may be biased in favour of the home t eam as a result of pressure from spectators. The present study examined off iciating behaviour and home advantage, defined as home teams winning over 5 0% of decided games in English Club Cricket, a sport virtually devoid of sp ectator influence. Records of game outcomes, as well as dismissals requirin g a decision by the umpire, were analysed. The relative frequency of umpiri ng decisions did not favour either home or away teams. However, a home adva ntage was found, with the home teams winning 57.1% of decided games (n = 1, 449). Considered together, the results suggest that in sports with little o r no spectator influence teams may win more often at home for reasons other than biased umpiring decisions, such as familiarity with their home ground or a visiting team's fatigue following travel.