The impact of professional football games upon violent assaults on women.

The relationship between the timing and outcomes of the Washington Redskins' football games and the frequency of admissions to hospital emergency rooms in northern Virginia is investigated. An OLS time series analysis is conducted, controlling for days of the week, months, years and special holidays for 1988-1989. The results indicate that the frequency of admissions of women victims of gun shots, stabbings, assaults, falls, lacerations and being struck by objects increases when the team wins. We hypothesize that many of these injuries are the result of battering and that having a favorite team win may act as a trigger for assault in some males. We suggest that viewing the successful use of violet acts may give the identifying fan a sense of license to dominate his surroundings.