by Karyn Maier, Managing Editor
British researchers at Durham University and the University of Plymouth have applied science to the game of football. Their findings? Teams that wear red uniforms lead the pack when it comes to winning games.
The report, published in the Journal of Sports Sciences, outlines the reason behind this phenomenon, and it has nothing to do with athletic skill. Instead, it is the physiological response to color ingrained in the human brain, perhaps passed down by our ancestors.
As Professor Robert Barton and Dr Russell Hill of Durham University (authors of the Olympic combat study) and Professor Martin Attrill and Dr Karen Gresty, of the University of Plymouth explain, the color red is strongly associated with a display of male aggression and superior status within the species. One example the researchers point to that is commonly seen in nature is the red breasted male robin. While scientists debate the mechanism behind the male of most species being more colorful than their female counterparts, it is clear that a display of red coloring sends a signal to his peers that he is able to defend his territory against predators and is proficient in finding food. In addition, his red coloring is a ‘chick magnet’ – literally. Studies have shown that male birds with red plumage are rewarded with more offspring.
Humans, it seems, respond to color in a similar way. The color red makes a powerful impact and has been used to drive an image of superiority by groups ranging from marketing gurus to military strategists. Now, it seems that the color red conveys the same message in athletic competion too.
By tracing English football league records since the end of the second World War, researchers have come to the conclusion that athletes wearing red win more matches than their counterparts wearing white, blue or other colors. In addition, they tend to win more games at home.
This phenomenon was put to the test during the 2004 Olympics with contenders in the wrestling, boxing and taekwondo events when participants were randomly assigned red or blue uniforms. You guess it—those in red fared significantly better.
There is also evidence to indicate that males, in particular, are distracted by the color red. Romanian researchers put this theory to the test in 2007 by asking a panel of men and women to identify words appearing in red on a computer monitor. The men were significantly more challenged than the women, with a slower response time. According to the researchers, the color red…” distracts men through
a psychological rather than a perceptual mechanism. Such a mechanism would associate red with aggression or dominance and may have a long evolutionary history, as indicated by behavioural evidence from nonhuman primates and other species.”
What happens when players aren’t seeing red on the court or field? The British researchers discovered that teams wearing blue or white won fewer games, while teams donning yellow or orange uniforms had the worst performance record of all.
