Chris Anderson

Chris Anderson is the Ralf Dahrendorf Professor of European Politics and Society.

A student of political behaviour, Anderson’s research has centred on the micro-foundations of markets and democracy. Past research projects have investigated the popularity of governments, the dynamics of public opinion about European integration, and people’s satisfaction with democracy. In other streams of research, he has investigated the connection between welfare states and citizen behaviour and the political attitudes and behaviours of immigrants in Europe.

Anderson is the recipient of several scientific prizes, including the American Political Science Association’s Heinz Eulau Award for the best article published in the American Political Science Review and the Best Article Award from the Journal of Politics. He also has served as President of the American Political Science Association’s Sections on European Politics & Society and Elections, Public Opinion, and Voting Behavior, and on the editorial boards of a number of leading academic journals.

Anderson also has an interest in the political economy of sports. His book on football analytics, co-authored with David Sally, is titled The Numbers Game: Why Everything You Know About Football Is Wrong (Penguin) and combines social scientific insights with football data to understand player and team performance. He has extensive experience in the football industry and is a regular speaker at analytics and sports industry events, including the prestigious Sports Analytics Conference held annually in Boston by MIT’s Sloan School of Management.

Previously, Anderson held permanent or visiting appointments at Rice University, Northwestern University, the State University of New York, Syracuse University, the University of Oxford, Cornell University, and the University of Warwick. A native of Germany, he was educated at the University of Cologne, Virginia Tech, and Washington University in St. Louis, where he received his PhD.

He serves on the Board of Trustees for the American School in London.

He has spoken at a number of conferences, industry events, and company events across industries, including technology, sports, and finance, most commonly around or about football, professional sports, and the use of data analytics in sports.