As the 2026 FIFA World Cup heads towards the final on Sunday 19 July, hopes are high that football could at last be coming home. If it does, it’ll be the second time ever that England has clinched the prestigious title, after last lifting the cup in 1966.
This year, 48 countries have gone head-to-head for a place in the final, which is being played at America’s New York-New Jersey Stadium. When the tournament finishes, a total of 104 games will have been played across Canada, Mexico and America, which will have been watched by tens of millions of footie fans around the globe.
Whether you’re a fan of the beautiful game or just want to support your national team, watching the World Cup has always provided, and will continue to provide, plenty of highs and lows. What you may not realise though, is that football could provide an important lesson about investing.
Read on to discover more, however before you do, we need to look at three key players within the team.
Strikers
These are the players who make things happen as they’re the team’s primary goal scorers. Typically, they operate close to the opposing team’s goal, looking for opportunities to score goals using their speed, ball control and quick reactions.
This means they normally use high risk strategies that can result in goals being scored, or the ball being lost to the opposing team. In many ways this is similar to ‘higher-risk’ assets that are often found in investment portfolios, such as equities (shares).
Historically, these have tended to provide some of the strongest opportunities for long-term growth, which can help investors to build their wealth over time. Just as strikers miss goals, however, so equities can experience periods of volatility and may fall in value when the stock market drops.
Defenders
The role of the defender is to protect their team's goal and provide support to the goalkeeper. It’s important to remember that championship winning teams are built on strong defences, as it’s these players who stop strikers from the opposing team from scoring.
When it comes to investing, defenders could be compared to lower risk assets such as government bonds and certain property investments as they can offer investment portfolios an element of stability.
While no investment is risk-free, these assets generally experience less volatility than shares over the long term and may help reduce the impact of market turbulence.
Midfielder
Broadly speaking, midfielders are the link between the defence and the strikers, which help the team to control – and ultimately win – the game. As such, their role will at times overlap the striker and the defender’s role.
With investments, this is similar to assets that blend growth potential with income generation, helping to create more balanced portfolios. Examples of these assets include dividend-paying companies and commercial property funds.
No World Cup winning team will ever succeed with 11 strikers
The most successful teams will combine attacking flair, defensive strength and players who can link everything together. Every player understands they have a role to play, which is a principle that also applies to investing.
A well-constructed portfolio isn't built around a single investment, instead it combines different types of assets that work together to help achieve the investor’s long-term goals.
Concentrating wealth in one investment, a single sector or asset class, can result in unnecessary risk and a greater chance of potential losses. Spreading investments across different asset classes, sectors, and regions helps to reduce dependence on any single investment outcome and create a more balanced investment over the long term.
While it’s important to stress that this will never prevent losses, it will help to create smoother potential returns over time.
Managers connect the right players to get the right outcome
Even the most talented squad needs the right manager behind them, ensuring the players work together to maximise the potential for success. In many ways investment managers perform a similar role, as they help to create portfolios that align with an investor's objectives, time horizon and attitude to risk.
This in turn helps to maximise growth potential while keeping the risk of losses at an appropriate level for the investor. Always remember that the value of investments and any income from them can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you originally invested. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
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If you would like to discuss whether investing is for you, or have investments and would like to explore whether you could enhance their growth potential, please call us on 0333 010 0008.
We would be happy to arrange a no obligation initial meeting with one of our independent financial advisers.
3 July 2026