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Play FIFA World Cup 2018 With These Stocks

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The 2018 FIFA World Cup at Russia will take full charge ofsports lovers all over the world till Jul 15. For the coming one month, sponsors of the event will put up hoardings and adopt every means of advertisement to promote their brands. According to marketing agency Zenith, the event will likely inject about $2.4 billion to the global advertising market.

Not only the official partners of FIFA, companies that are into tourism and entertainment will also be in focus due to this event as athletes, event organizers and most importantly spectators from all over the world will gather in the hosting country Russia.

In short, the event is a golden goose and will likely have a substantial impact on several companies and stocks. In this regard, below we highlight a few winning bets.

Broadcasting

Broadcasting appears to be the most important money-spinner in such events. The majority of FIFA’s revenues originate from the sale of television broadcasting rights. The organization has forecast revenues of $5.65 billion in the four years up to the Russia tournament, which if realized would mark a 5% rise on the earlier World Cup cycle.

In the United States,Twenty-First Century Fox Inc.'s (FOXA - Free Report)  Fox Sports is the official broadcaster, while Telemundo, owned by Comcast Corporation (CMCSA - Free Report) , will air the matches in South America. In some South American countries, DirecTV, owned by AT&T (T - Free Report) will broadcast the event.

Social Media

Social media is mightier than TV broadcasting these days when it comes to a match. Fans also follow players on Instagram (owned by Facebook and Twitter .

Takeaway Restaurants

While fans are likely to avoid fine dining restaurants in this one month, they will surely not say no to refreshments. So, takeaway firms are sure to score higher as fans won’t want to lose a moment of the match. Pizza joints like Domino’s Pizza (DPZ - Free Report) should benefit from higher takeaway sales.

Beer

Beer consumption normally increases during the World Cup period. Morgan Stanley analysts pointed to a historical trend and concluded that volumes of beer normally see a 2-3% rise in host countries during a World Cup year.

Carlsberg (CABGY - Free Report) , the market leader in Russia and Budweiser maker ABInBev (BUD - Free Report) , a global sponsor, can be winners thanks to this trend, as quoted on Reuters. ABInBev forecast that its sales in soccer hubs Brazil and Argentina will likely increase by 0.5 to 1 percentage points. The credit can be given to the football-mania as both Heineken and ABInBev topped their counterparts during the last World Cup in 2014.

Pubs

Many will hit the pubs to enjoy the game with a like-minded crowd. Many analysts are of the view that Britain’s pub operators including Greene King Plc GKNGY is likely to be a winner. Morgan Stanley noticed that the pub chain’s sales increased 3.5% during Euro 2016.

Casinos

Betting at casinos on which team to win the match or finally pick the trophy should be rife now. Also, the Supreme Court's decision to potentially permit legal sports betting in several U.S. states gave a boost to the space.

So, casino-hotel companies like MGM Resorts International (MGM - Free Report) and Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS - Free Report) should be watched closely. The U.K.-based Paddy Power Betfair Plc PDYPY, which operates as an online betting and gaming company, can also get a short-term boost, if England performs well, per Reuters.

Sportswear Brands

Arrangements of such a sporting extravaganza definitely put the spotlight on sportswear makers Adidas (ADDYY - Free Report) and Nike (NKE - Free Report) . German behemoth Adidas has been a FIFA partner while both Adidas and Nike have famous football players for promoting their brands. The companies are outfitting football teams in the tournament. While both are set to gain from this event, Adidas holds an edge over Nike as the former has managed to bag more teams (12 vs 10) to outfit.

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