Can football come home? Investment opportunities across the World Cup

By Joss Murphy on 8 June 2026 in Equities

England fans will be resting their vocal chords over the next few days as they prepare for the start of the 23rd FIFA World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada. After 60 years of hurt, will football finally be coming home or will the wait go on?

This will be the biggest World Cup in history, with 48 teams across the globe battling out across 104 games to win the top prize in men’s football.

But while the likes of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe and England’s own Harry Kane might steal the sporting headlines – you could argue the biggest winners are those who don’t even kick a ball, with governing body FIFA set to rake in almost £10 billion across the entire revenue cycle of the tournament (which includes the qualifiers). FIFA projects making around £2.1 billion from marketing rights alone with key sponsors like Bank of America, Coca-Cola and Adidas – this is more than double the £800 million made from the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

But we are purists at FundCalibre when it comes to football, so we’ve decided to take a look at the investment funds covering the different teams that could steal the glory (and the headlines) at this year’s football extravaganza.

Host nations — USA, Mexico and Canada

The USA men’s team has never been crowned champions. Their best place came way back in 1930 at the inaugural tournament in Uruguay. In contrast, the USA has won the Women’s World Cup on a record four occasions. Host nations typically outperform expectations, so there will be hope the US can go on a run until the latter stages buoyed by strong home support.

Unlike most sports, the US is actually not the dominant force when it comes to football – but bigger does not always mean better. A good example is the Schroder US Mid Cap fund, managed by Bob Kaynor, which has a focus on small and medium-sized companies, with a diversified set of return drivers, in order to dampen the risk of the overall portfolio.

To diversify the portfolio, the team has three sources of stock returns. ‘Steady eddies’ or less cyclically-sensitive stocks act as ballast in the portfolio. ‘Mispriced growth’ are stocks where Bob feels the market has not fully understood the company’s earnings potential. The last, and smallest, bucket is ‘recovery-type’ situations.

Mexico also has a lively chance given the tournament is on their home turf as well. Raucous support and being used to playing at altitude and high temperatures also plays into their hands (or feet). JPMorgan Emerging Markets Growth & Income, which targets high-quality businesses it can invest in over the long term, currently invests 3% in the country*.

Those looking for Canadian exposure might consider the M&G Global Listed Infrastructure fund, which has 17.5% invested in the country. This includes Franco Nevada, a gold-focused royalty and streaming company, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario*.

The favourites – Spain

Spain are many people’s favourites to build on the success of winning Euro 2024 and claim their second World Cup. The team has an array of elite young talent, squad depth and momentum. The feeling is that they are the most complete team in the world at the moment.

BlackRock Continental European Income is managed by Brian Hall and currently invests 10% in Spain*, including CaxiaBank, which is one of the largest retail banks in the country. The fund targets undervalued European companies that offer reliable, sustainable dividends; potential dividend growth; and protection against inflation, with a lower level of risk. It currently yields 3.25%**.

Home nations – England and Scotland

England have only won the title once – on home soil in 1966 – but hopes are high this time around, having reached two Euro finals and the semi-final and quarter finals of the last two World Cups. Manager Thomas Tuchel has taken a risk with his squad by sticking to what he sees as some tried and trusted players used during the qualifiers – at the expense of some big names.

Scotland are also making their first appearance at the World Cup since 1998. Can the Tartan Army break their first round hoodoo and make it to the knockout stages?

Let’s hope Thomas Tuchel’s squad selection does not come back to haunt him, as a manager is only as good as the players he chooses. It is the same in the UK small-cap space – this is the true realm of the active manager – who is only as good as the stocks they choose. Unicorn UK Smaller Companies is top quartile in the IA UK Smaller Companies sector over three and five years***. Manager Simon Moon builds a high-conviction portfolio of 40 names. He looks for stocks with lasting competitive advantages, experienced management teams and strong balance sheets. A large proportion of research is performed in-house – this allows Unicorn to identify companies often missed by brokers.

Top holdings at present include engineering and manufacturing company Goodwin (4.2%); vinyl flooring manufacturer James Halstead (3.7%); and specialist photonics and laser technology company Gooch and Housego (3.5%)*.

Everyone’s second favourite team — Brazil

Players wearing the famous yellow and blue strip of Brazil have been crowned world champions a record five times. Although the last time they lifted the trophy was back in 2002 – that is a long time for the most iconic national team in world football.

GQG Partners Emerging Markets Equity fund currently has 22.8% invested in Brazilian equities*, including their largest holding Petróleo Brasileiro, Brazil’s giant state-controlled oil company and one of the most important energy companies in the emerging markets world. Another to consider with a strong allocation to Brazilian equities is FSSA Global Emerging Markets Focus, which has a 7.5% allocation to the country*.

Dark horses – Morocco and Japan

Morocco are seen by many as the dark horse of this tournament. Having reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup, they have a strong defence and a sprinkling of star players including Achraf Hakimi. They are also used to the heat, which will be a big factor in this World Cup. They are probably the strongest outfit outside of Europe and South America.

T. Rowe Price Frontier Markets Equity currently has a 10.5% allocation to Moroccan equities, including Attijariwafa Bank, the largest bank in Morocco and one of the biggest financial institutions in North Africa*.

The managers believe that frontier equity markets are among the most inefficient globally, offering significant opportunities for active managers with deep regional expertise. The investable universe spans over 50 countries and includes more than 500 companies. The fund is unconstrained by market cap or sector and includes developed and emerging market-listed firms with substantial frontier exposure.

Another team with optimism behind them is Japan. They have a growing talent pool and have pushed a number of big teams (Germany, Spain and Belgium) recently. They have a strong defence and can break on teams at speed.

Baillie Gifford Japanese is one of the oldest funds in the IA Japan sector. Managed by Matthew Brett and Jared Anderson, the research process is designed to ensure the best ideas of each individual team member are included in the portfolio. It is built around five specific factors: a company’s competitive advantage, industry, financial strength, how well it is run and its valuation.

*Source: fund factsheet, 30 April 2026
**Source: FE fundinfo, 28 May 2026
***Source: FE fundinfo, total returns in pounds sterling, 27 May 2021 to 27 May 2026