Asset manager [tag|Russell Investments|]Russell Investments[/tag] has offered up its insight into the Brazil World Cup - the latest firm to spell out the economics of the tournament.

Asset manager Russell Investments has joined the throng of such firms saying what it thinks will be the economic effects of the Brazil World Cup soccer tournament.

In just under two weeks' time, a million jackets will be left on the back of office chairs as financiers sneak off to watch their idols.

Yet this time around it feels like firms have fully embraced the tournament instead of turning a blind eye on the empty trading floors and meeting rooms. In the run-up there has been a relentless flow of statistics, graphs and predictions published by the global financial power houses.

Last week it was Goldman Sachs saying that Brazil will win and England will crash out early.

This week it is Russell Investments' turn. The firm shows there is some important hard economics behind the tournament.  

It states that Brazil is in line for a much-needed economic boost if previous data is anything to go by. “The last two hosts of the World Cup have been rewarded with strong equity markets a year after the event. With Brazil's equity market down nearly 20 percent year-over-year it hopes to be able to turn a corner and continue this trend,” the company said in a statement.

South Africa, host of the 2010 World Cup, saw its stock market returning a very healthy 17.1 per cent, beating the 12.4 per cent return for Russell’s parent index.

 In the 2006 World Cup Germany saw its equity market return 43.8 per cent, once again far outperforming Russell’s 28.3 per cent return for the parent index.

And this year's host country could certainly do with a boost. At present the Russell Emerging Markets Index country constituent Brazil is down 16.6 per cent for the year, while the Russell Emerging Markets Index is down 0.8 per cent for the same time period.