In a bizarre exposure, a new study has found a link between domestic abuse and world cup football.

The study led by UK based researchers says, domestic violence increases during World Cup football matches especially if the home team loses.

The researchers carried a detailed study of the world cup football tournaments in 2002, 2006 and 2010 in Lancashire Constabulary. Scientists discovered that after controlling for day of the week, incidents of domestic violence rose by 38 percent in Lancashire when the England team played and lost and increased by 26 percent when the England national team played and won or drew compared with days when there was no England match.

“Although it is difficult to say the tournament is a causal factor, the prestigious tournament does concentrate the risk factors into a short and volatile period, thereby intensifying the concepts of masculinity, rivalry and aggression,” researchers said.

Scientists say these matches had also a carry-over effect with incidents of domestic abuse 11 percent higher the day after an England match.

The study led by Dr Stuart Kirby and Professor Brian Francis of Lancaster University with Rosalie O’Flaherty found that the average number of incidents of domestic violence on the days when England played was 79.3 compared with 58.2 on the days the team did not play.

“The World Cup appears a reason for many to party, however delight and expectation can turn into despair and conflict with the kick of a ball,” a police officer quoted in the report said.

The researchers also found that reported domestic abuse incidents increased in frequency with each new tournament.

The study was published in the Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency.