Sophisticated Mathematical Model Predicts Spain Will Win World Cup Final
Soccer Math This graph shows the Spanish team passes the ball much more frequently than the Dutch team, which a University of London mathematics team predicts will lead the Spanish to victory. University of LondonClairvoyant cephalopod Paul also chooses Spain over the Dutch We're not endorsing any big bets, of course, but a pair of London mathematicians say they're confident Spain will win the World Cup final Sunday. It's not just a prediction -- it's science. Queen Mary, University of London professors -- and soccer fans -- Javier López Peña and Hugo Touchette collected ball-passing data from each World Cup team and used graph theory to analyze each team's style of play. Their results reveal "gaping holes" in England's strategy against Germany, which they say explains team England's loss. The results also show that Spain's propensity for passing might help them beat the Dutch this weekend. Touchette explains in a university...
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