Do major sporting events, such as this year’s World Cup, influence the sexual behavior of fans and cause a significant change in local birth rates and sex ratios? A review of 4 different studies indicates that the answer is “maybe”. These studies looked at birth rates and/or sex ratios in live births 9 months after major sporting events. Although there is some evidence that a win may increase the birth rate and an unexpected loss may decrease the birth rate, whether the World Cup (or other major sporting events) impacts the birth rate is inconclusive. Interestingly, a 2015 study published in the Journal of Advances in Medicine and Medical Research looked at sex ratios in Malta over a period of 50 years to see if they were affected by the World Cup. They found there was a significant decrease in female live births.
World Cup and Babies
