An insurance company sponsored study at a driving simulator at the University of Leicester finds that football fans drive erratically when listening to their favorite clubs on the radio.

The report also showed that the driving speed of football fans mirrored that of the match that they were listening to. For example, during a match between Portsmouth and Newcastle, the pace of the match increased with a forward movement by the Newcastle team. At the same time, the driver under scrutiny reacted by accelerating the vehicle. During this period, the throttle was set to maximum and the driver increased the simulation vehicle speed from 68mph to 77mph in 22 seconds. The driver also overtook another vehicle.

One can’t help but wonder what would have happened if they had done the experiment the day Newcastle was relegated, on a 1-0 loss to Villa on an own goal by Damien Duff.

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