Does Employing Skilled Immigrants Enhance Competitive Performance? Evidence from European Football Clubs.

This article investigates the causal impact of employing skilled immigrants on organizational competitive performance by analyzing European professional football clubs from Germany, Italy, France, England, and Spain between 1990 and 2020. Using detailed microdata on players' birthplaces and club-level restrictions on immigrant players as instrumental variables, the study finds that increasing the number of immigrant players in a club's starting lineup significantly improves match outcomes. Two key mechanisms explain this effect: immigrants tend to exhibit higher individual talent than native players, and they enhance the organization's strategic variety by introducing diverse playing styles and serving as coordinators who integrate complex team actions. These findings highlight how skilled immigrants contribute not only through superior individual performance but also by broadening and coordinating the strategic options available to organizations in competitive, human capital–intensive settings.