Key World Cup FinTech stats since 2023:
- World Cup Special: Global FinTech Through the Lens of the Beautiful Game
- Global FinTech deal activity among World Cup qualifying nations grew by 22% over the period to Q1 2026
- US firms secured 42% of all deals among World Cup qualifying nations, cementing their position as the dominant force in the rankings
- Abound, a leading credit technology company, secured one of the largest FinTech deals of the period with a $1bn funding round
World Cup Special: Global FinTech Through the Lens of the Beautiful Game
With the FIFA World Cup now under way, it felt fitting to put a sporting spin on the latest FinTech research.
The data below covers global FinTech activity across the nations that qualified for this year’s tournament, tracking deal volume and funding from the start of 2023 through to Q1 2026.
One note worth flagging at the outset: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland compete as separate nations on the pitch, but the underlying data groups them together as the UK.
Of those four home nations, only England and Scotland made it to this year’s World Cup, so when you see the UK figures below, bear that context in mind.
Global FinTech deal activity among World Cup qualifying nations grew by 22% over the period to Q1 2026
Across the World Cup-qualifying nations, FinTech activity through to Q1 2026 reached $369.9bn across 27,020 deals.
That marks a 34% rise in funding and a 22% climb in deal volume compared with the period to Q1 2025, which recorded $275.7bn across 22,100 deals.
The scale of that expansion, sustained across both metrics, points to a market that has continued to attract capital at pace, even as parts of the broader technology sector have faced a more cautious investor environment.
US firms secured 42% of all deals among World Cup qualifying nations, cementing their position as the dominant force in the rankings
With a 42% share of deals, the US towers above every other World Cup qualifying nation.
Firms accounted for 11,447 deals through to Q1 2026, up from 9,151 deals in the period to Q1 2025.
The UK held firm in second as companies secured 2,161 deals and an 8% share, stable against 1,790 deals and an 8% share previously.
France and Germany maintained joint third, each holding a 3% share across both periods.
France recorded 763 deals against 664 previously, while Germany posted 699 compared with 606.
The top four ranking remained entirely unchanged between periods.
What shifted was the underlying momentum, with every nation in the top four growing in volume, suggesting the expansion has been broadly distributed rather than concentrated in a single market.
Abound, a leading credit technology company, secured one of the largest FinTech deals of the period with a $1bn funding round
This significant funding follows Abound’s rapid growth and achievement of profitability just three years after its launch.
The new capital includes a multi-year asset-backed debt financing arrangement from Citi, based on loan originations, and a Series B equity round led by Silicon Valley’s GSR Ventures.
Abound had issued over $400m in loans and doubled its workforce to over 130 employees.
The company’s AI-powered technology, Render, analyses customers’ bank transaction data to tailor loan repayment plans based on individual financial situations, contrasting with traditional credit checks that rely on broad statistical averages.
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