Data Dump: Maine High School Boys' Soccer Rankings (October 24)

 

The Maine Principals Association compiles Heal Points to determine official playoff seedings for high school soccer in Maine, but the Portland Press Herald and the website Maine Basketball Rankings also create rankings throughout the season.

Below are two tables that capture all three sources' rankings for Maine high school boys' programs, as well as a composite of the three rankings right before playoffs start later today: 

Data Dump: Maine High School Girls' Soccer Rankings (October 24)

The Maine Principals Association compiles Heal Points to determine official playoff seedings for high school soccer in Maine, but the Portland Press Herald and the website Maine Basketball Rankings also create rankings throughout the season.

Below are two tables that capture all three sources' rankings for Maine high school girls' programs, as well as a composite of the three rankings right before playoffs start later today: 

Data Dump: Fryeburg Fair Handle, 1989 vs. 2024

 

Fryeburg Fair Handle: 1989 vs. 2024

Below is a table that compares the betting handle on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday racing at the Fryeburg Fair between 1989 and 2024--including an adjustment for inflation.

The source for the 1989 handle is the October 1989 edition of Northeast Harness News, the source for the 2024 handle is the U.S. Trotting Association's web site, and the Bureau of Labor Statistic's inflation CPI Inflation calculator was used to convert the 1989 handle to real dollars.

Data Dump: Maine Harness Training + Boarding Fees, 1989 vs. 2024

 

An ad for the Beckwith Stable in the October 1989 issue of Northeast Harness News advertises their training fees as $12 per day, with their boarding fees at $8 per day. When adjusted for inflation, those fees are $30.08 and $20.05 respectively.  

Which means the daily $30 training fee or $20 boarding fee we currently pay for Crimson Pine and Sixby Hanover at historic Norton Farm in Falmouth, Maine is right in line with inflation over the last 35 years.

Data Dump: Boston Red Sox vs. Liverpool FC Season Ticket Prices

World Soccer Talk recently posted a price comparison between game day experiences at Manchester City and at Inter Miami, which lead to this question: How do season ticket packages for the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool FC compare, with each organization belonging to the same ownership group?

Below is a table that compares the most expensive and least expensive season ticket packages that provides the total cost, a per-game cost that accounts for the different number of home games (81 vs. 19) for each team, and currency exchange rates.

What's not factored in the costs shown in the table is Liverpool FC's lower-cost tiers for each package that apply to senior citizens (65+), young adults (ages 17-21), juniors (ages 16 and younger), and disabled supporters.

 

Data Dump: NFL vs. Big 5 Scoring

When asked in a podcast interview last September which soccer rule he'd change if given the opportunity, U.S. men's national team and A.C. Milan standout Christian Pulisic said he'd assign each goal scored seven points. So your 2-1 game would actually be scored 14-7, your 3-2 game would be 21-14, and on and on.

Pulisic's suggestion, of course, was connected to the scoring rules in American football and the common complaint that soccer is too low-scoring compared to that sport. 

But Pulisic has a point: The two sports aren't too far apart if you assign one point per touchdown in football to match the one point per goal in soccer.

Below is a table comparing the highest-scoring teams, the median-scoring teams, and the lowest-scoring teams using the scoring system of each touchdown and goal scored counting as one point:

 

On average, the NFL still outscored the EPL, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, Serie A, and La Liga during the leagues' respective 2023 seasons. 

But Pulisic's overall point stands, even if his rule change shouldn't be adopted.