Are the Interactions Between Manager and Employee Characteristics Associated with Team Performance? the Case of Men’s Football in Turkey

The lack of literature covering the association of the interactions between manager and employee characteristics with team performance highlights a significant gap. We test the association of team performance in men’s football with player and head coach turnover, origin and age, the interactions between players and head coach for each characteristic, Transfermarkt value and roster size. Data are from the Turkish Süper Lig over 2009–2023 and found on Transfermarkt. A significant positive association is found for foreign players, the interaction between foreign players and domestic head coach, player age and Transfermarkt value. A significant negative association is found for player departures, the interaction between player departures and “old” head coach, head coach age, age difference between head coach and players, and roster size. No significant association is found for other variables. Clubs could attract foreign players but not necessarily a foreign head coach and use their economic resources to retain their players, while they could also consider age difference between head coach and players. We address a gap by covering the association between team performance and the interactions between player and head coach characteristics. The originality/value comes from the gap addressed.