"In northern Europe, in general, we tend to value discipline and sticking to your task highly, " said Kuper.

CNN: June 29, 2012 -- Updated 1447 GMT (2247 HKT)

Kuper and Szymanski claim the tournament actually makes people happier by creating a collective event that helps us value relationships with family, friends and the world.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Winner's view is shared by Simon Kuper, journalist and co-author of "Soccernomics, " a book about football's truths, who subscribes to the view that England's methodology was spawned from a notion that the soldier was society's greatest role model.

CNN: June 29, 2012 -- Updated 1447 GMT (2247 HKT)

Author and anthropologist Simon Kuper agrees, saying the political context may also explain why places like Gibraltar and the Falkland islands have more symbols of Britishness than many areas in the UK, where ostentatiously displaying union jacks might be seen as old-fashioned or embarrassing.

BBC: Are there places more British than the UK?