“England seems a reasonable bet to reach the quarter finals based on its current FIFA world ranking and past World Cup performance, but it will do well to get beyond that point – which it has never done before when playing outside Europe.”

- John Hawksworth, head of macroeconomics, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Their broader analysis – home advantage and the strength of historic football traditions may turn out to be the playmakers in World Cup success.