2026 MLS All-Star Game in Charlotte on Wednesday
The 2026 MLS All-Star Game is set to kick off midweek with the MLS All-Stars facing the Liga MX All-Stars from Bank of America Stadium (FieldTurf Vertex CORE) in Charlotte, North Carolina on Wednesday night (Apple TV, 8 EDT/7 CDT/6 MDT/5 PDT).
Inter Miami superstar and living legend Lionel Messi will not play in the game, with the magical Argentinian playmaker in the midst of a 21-day rest period after the conclusion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which saw La Albiceleste (and Messi) play the maximum number of matches.
Messi won’t play, nor will teammate Rodrigo De Paul in this fifth edition of the MLS-Liga MX contest, but the MLS will still have plenty of talent on its 29-player roster. The 2026 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge will be held today, Tuesday, July 28, at Truist Field in Charlotte.
The 2026 MLS All-Stars starting XI are GK Brian Schwake (Nashville SC), LB Anthony Markanich (Minnesota United FC ), CB Tim Ream (Charlotte FC), CB Mbekezeli Mbokazi (Chicago Fire), RB Andy Najar (Nashville SC), and DMF Sebastian Berhalter (Vancouver Whitecaps FC).
The MLS All-Stars starting attack will be AMF Zavier Gozo (Real Salt Lake), AMF Hany Mukhtar (Nashville SC), F Son Heung-Min (LAFC), F Hugo Cuypers (Chicago Fire FC), and F Lionel Messi (Inter Miami CF), who may be replaced by Sam Surridge (Nashville SC) or Petar Musa (FC Dallas).
The bench will be loaded for HC Dean Smith, with guys like Thomas Müller (Vancouver Whitecaps), Evander (FC Cincinnati), Matt Freese (NYCFC), Jackson Ragen (Seattle Sounders FC), Anders Dreyer (San Diego FC), and Charlotte’s Pep Biel (MF), Ashley Westwood (MF).
The Liga MX AS roster has GKs Nahuel Guzmán (Tigres) and Keylor Navas (Pumas), D’s Bruno Méndez (Toluca), Richy Ledezma (Guadalajara), Nathan Silva (Pumas), and Jesús Gallardo (Toluca), and Nicolás Castro (Toluca), Brian Rodríguez (América), and Armando González (Chivas).
2026 MLS All-Star Game Preview and Pick
The MLS All-Stars are 3-2 in their last 5 All-Star games, beating the Liga MX All-Stars 3 times (2021, 2022, 2025) and losing to them in 2024. The MLS All-Stars have scored 7 goals in those 4 meetings, but so have the Liga MX All-Stars thanks to a 4-1 win in 2023 in Columbus, Ohio.
The MLS All-Stars were humbled by EPL champions Arsenal in 2023 (5-0) and invited opponents to this Midsummer Shinkick are 12-10 vs. the MLS All-Stars. Four of these MLS All-Star Games have had to go to a Penalty Kick (PK) Shootout to determine the winner (2009, 2017, 2018, 2021).
Without Messi, this All-Star game will lack a little luster and may see one fewer goal for the home team. Like most All-Star Games in professional sports, no one will be trying 100% to avoid any potential injuries and hinder the future chances of the franchises they play for—common sense.
So unlike the NBA All-Star Game where someone scores every split-second, scoring here may be minimal, with La Hormiga and few of the Liga MX All-Stars familiar with Bank of America Stadium.
➤Trading Thoughts: Last year, the MLS took a 1-0 lead thanks to a Sam Surridge goal (28) in the first half, then took a 2-0 lead right after halftime on a Tai Baribo tally (51’). Liga MX pulled within one on a Gilberto Mora goal (64’) before Brian White ended things with a goal for the MLS (80’).
Expect the Liga MX All-Stars to be more intent on getting the win in the Tar Heel State with outfield players like AMF Gilberto Mora (Tijuana), LB Luis Reyes (Monterrey), Érik Lira (Cruz Azul), and João Pedro (Atlético San Luis) and two experienced GKs in Guzmán and Navas.
The Both Teams To Score (‘Yes’, -455) is 4-1 in the last 5 MLS All-Star Games. The plan is to focus on the Props market and target the goal scorers: Armando González and Brian Rodríguez on the Liga MX All-Stars, and Hugo Cuypers and Sam Surridge on the MLS All-Stars look like good candidates.
⚽2026 MLS All-Star Game Winner Pick: Liga MX All-Stars +154
Biden's smell hadn't even left the Oval Office yet…
And Trump got to work immediately on the most secretive government operation since the Manhattan Project.
While the world was distracted by tariffs, Trump redacted over 750 government files.
Because Trump saw the writing on the wall: These files were about to destroy everything we love about America.
Click here to see what's inside the "Redacted Trump Files" before the world finds out the shocking truth.
‘Will Trump be in the World Cup Photo?’ a Wild Ride
Proof prediction markets can generate something out of a predictable nothing: we saw $14,706,683 traded on the ‘Will Trump be in the World Cup Champions Photo?’ polymarket at Polymarket, and of course, our president found a way to justify why somebody made the market.
The grand prize for the Circa Survivor NFL contest at the Circa sportsbook at the Circa Resort & Casino in Las Vegas last year was $18,718,000 for some context. So this one is weird on so many levels, and the way Donald Trump acted as he slid into the photo and didn’t leave for a bit was odd.
But everything we see in this administration seems off a bit, as the accusations of insider trading by the White House’s longtime (and Trump’s favorite) teleprompter revealed. There are no markets, or meme coins, or countries, or bodies of water this gang won’t try to monetize.
This polymarket saw a wild ride—and it’s not officially over yet—trading as low as 13% (‘Yes’) on June 13 and then slowly rising and hitting 50% on June 18, presumably from whales buying ‘Yes.’ Weird, but not abnormal.
Then the market continued to rise to 70.5% before a massive 25% dip to 45% on July 18, one day before the Final. On the day of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final, Sunday, July 29, 2026, the ‘Will Trump be in the World Cup Champions Photo’ rocketed to 99.9% (July 22).
The Final Review on this market was ‘Yes,’ after two previous ‘Yes’ Proposed Outcomes and two expected Disputes. With whales and UMA tokenholders often making up part of the Dispute Resolution teams, it’s hard to trust markets like these, and the outcomes are driven by the players involved.
When Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo cried after losing to Spain in the World Cup, and there was controversy in that unique market, at least visual evidence could be served up by the ‘Yes’ crowd, and the polymarket wasn’t as shady-looking as this one.
Here we see an egomaniacal president intentionally interjecting himself into the biggest sports moment of the year, then acting unaware of why FIFA president Gianni Infantino is ushering him off. Trump now seems more like the nemesis in his old head, Sleepy Joe Biden, with more ill intent.
Bond Bots Get Rinsed on Wrong MLB Final Score
Some of the most profitable sports traders on prediction markets are actually bots, designed by Homo sapiens to look for, come in, and buy up any perceived edges in marketplaces, be it early on or late in any given “Yes-No” binary market or sporting event. Bots don’t think; they do.
But just “doing” proved a bit problematic when Man vs. Machines left us with a confluence of freaky things that could only happen here in The Digital Age and in the vast ocean that is prediction markets, and further proof that if you are a human and can think, you can profit from simply paying attention.
The Bad Craziness happened somewhat innocently at the end of the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Angels game on Thursday, July 23. The game, at SF, was in the Bottom of the 10th inning and tied 7-7, with the Giants having loaded the bases with Rafael Devers at the plate and batting.
Devers proceeded to hit a ball that bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double, scoring the game’s winning run and giving the Giants a 7-6 win. But a Human being assuming 2 runs scored posted a bad 8-6 final, and the computers got in line, sending this bad information to places like ESPN and Polymarket.
Ooooops. AI needs more “I” in it. Codewriters can't build in Logic, as we see time and time again. So, after the 8-6 final score was posted—and the game was over, but the markets were still trading—bots began buying contracts on some bad outcomes, like Giants -1.5 (Run Line) and (in-game) Over 13.5 (runs).
Because this MLB game was played in the Pacific Time Zone (PT) and went to extra innings, it ended very late. Even later (earlier?) for those living in the Eastern Time Zone (ET), traders might not have been up or awake enough (or watching the game) to realize simple MLB things.
The only way the Giants could have won by more than 1 run, being the Home team, would be for a batter to have hit a HR with at least 1 runner on base (+2). Because a bad score was sent out, we saw bots and traders lose their asses and a lot of money on bad information.
Making it weirder, Devers almost missed first base after the hit, which may not have ended the game, giving all the umpires present a lifetime crisis, Kalshi customer service operators a living 3 a.m. nightmare, and possibly sending poor Mother Earth off her axis. What have we created, Doc?
Next week on When Humans Operating Machines Fuck Other Humans Operating Other Machines, we will take a look at...”
Forget what the media says about an AI bubble, and forget the market swings…
Jeff Brown says we’re on the edge of a $100 trillion boom, thanks to a breakthrough tech hidden in a dying coal town in Wyoming… it sounds crazy, until you see what he uncovered. But there may not be much time to get in on this tech before everyone catches on.
Q2 Serves Up Busiest Earnings Report Week of ‘26
The Earnings Calendar is as heavy as we have seen this year, with several companies reporting 2Q earnings this last week of the month, including Novartis (NVTS), Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY), and Will Woodward (WWB), all of which reported on Monday, July 27.
On Tuesday, July 28—the day we publish online the first of our two weekly issues—PayPal (PYPL), Coca-Cola (KO), and UPS (UPS) will deliver 2Q earnings, with Procter & Gamble (PG), Wingstop (WING), and Etsy (ETSY) among those reporting before the opening bell on Wednesday, July 29.
On Thursday, July 30, Cigna Group (CI), Hyatt Hotels (H), and Tradeweb Markets (TW) all report before the opening bell, and on Friday, July 31, we get Q2 reports from Chevron (CVX), CBOE (CBOW), and Exxon Mobil (XOM), all of which will come before the opening bell.
Chairman of the Board and CEO Mike Wirth and Chevron will give its 2026 Q2 Earnings Call on Friday, July 31 (11 EDT/10 CDT/8 PDT). You can access the conference call and webcast at the Chevron Investor Relations page or by dialing in (Listen only) 1-800-918-2066 (Conference ID #: 3870797).
Emmys: Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama
We continue our prediction market trading buildup to the Primetime Emmys, set to air from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, California on Monday, September 14, 2026 (NBC, Peacock, 8 EDT/7 CDT/6 MDT/5 PDT), with Mariska Hargitay serving as the night’s host.
At Polymarket in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama in 2026, we see Katherine LaNasa (75%) from the popular HBO Max show The Pitt as the category’s favorite of the Emmy nominees annually honoring the best in TV. Television never died, you damn cynics. It just evolved.
Following on July 26 were Karolina Wydra from “Pluribus” (7%), Julianne Nicholson from Paradise (5%), Sepideh Moafi from The Pitt (4%), Allison Janney from The Diplomat (4%), Taylor Dearden from The Pitt (2%), and Fiona Dourif, also from The Pitt (2%).
➤Trading Thoughts: Charge nurse Dana Evans is the character Katherine LaNasa on a cast absolutely loaded with talent, and Emmy nominees as we will see next month. LaNasas won this category at the 2025 Emmy Awards, and the collective wisdom of the masses says she repeats.
The first-ever Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama winner was Vivian Vance for her role as Ethel Mertz in the CBS comedy I Love Lucy, in 1965, before many of us were hatched or cloned. Drea de Matteo also won it in 2004 for her role of Adriana La Cerva on HBO’s epic The Sopranos.
🗽Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Emmy Winner Pick: Katherine LaNasa, Yes, 75¢
Emmys: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama
Analyzing the ‘Emmys 2026: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama,’ it’s all about HBO Max’s “The Pitt” (Season 2) again, with Patrick Ball (42%) and Shawn Hatosy (16%) two of the traders’ top three choices at Polymarket July 26, with Tom Pelphrey (“Task”) the second choice (30%).
Next up in trading order and not being given much chance at winning an Emmy in Lipstick City are The Morning Show actor Billy Crudup (9%), Slow Horses star Jack Lowden (6%), Pluribus star Carlos-Manuel Vesga (2%), and The Pitt co-star Gerran Howell (1%).
➤Trading Thoughts: This category is closer than many others, with traders giving two actors a decent chance of winning this award, given to Tramel, Tillman (Severance) a year ago and to comic icon Art Carney (The Jackie Gleason Show) in the first-ever statuette given in this category.
🗽Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series Emmy Winner Pick: Patrick Ball, Yes, 42¢
Click here to trade on the ‘Emmys 2026: Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series at Polymarket
NCAAF: Southeastern Conference Winner
The 2026 NCAA College Football season kicks off in August, so no better time than now to look at the Power Four Conferences (ACC, SEC, Big Ten, Big 12) winners markets, starting with the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
In the 2026 College Football Southeastern Conference Champion market, Georgia (25c) is the trader’s favorite, followed by Arch Manning and Texas (21c), Alabama (21c), LSU (11c), Texas A&M (10c), QB Trinidad Chambliss and Ole Miss (7c), Tennessee (6c), and Florida (3c).
The underdogs to win the SEC are Auburn (2c), Missouri (2c), South Carolina (2c), Arkansas (1c), Vanderbilt (1c), Mississippi State (1c), and Kentucky (1c). The SEC had losing SU records to the other three Power Four conferences in 2025 (ACC 6-8), Big Ten (2-4), and the Big 12 (3-7).
➤Trading Thoughts: Georgia won the SEC last year, going 7-1, the same record as Ole Miss and Alabama. The Dawgs pounded the Crimson Tide in the 2026 SEC Championship Game, 28-7 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Ole Miss gets Chambliss and RB Kewan Lacy back and will be motivated.
Gunner Stockton, Ellis Robinson IV, K.J. Bolden, and Georgia are the trader’s fifth choice to win the 2027 National Championship, behind three Big Ten teams (Ohio State, 13%; Indiana, 11%; Oregon, 11%) and Notre Dame (14%). Texas will have the best O, Georgia the best D, but the Rebels win.
🏈2026 Southeastern Conference Regular Season Winner Pick: Ole Miss, Yes, 7¢
MLB Futures: Boston Red Sox Next Manager
We looked at who might be the next permanent manager of the Philadelphia Phillies in the last edition of The Prediction Report; now we sprint to the AL East to speculate who the red-hot Boston Red Sox will have roaming their historic dugout at Fenway Park in the future.
At Polymarket, Chad Tracy (42%) is increasing his lead (+5%) in the MLB: Next Red Sox Manager market, followed by David Ross (9%), Andrew Bailey (8%), Rocco Baldelli (7%), Omar López (6%), Walter McKinven (5%), Daniel Decalso (4%), and Brandon Hyde (4%).
The underdogs to become the next Boston skipper—a position currently held by interim Tracy, much like Mattingly in Philadelphia—are Jason Varitek (3%), Dustin Pedroia (3%), Alex Rodriguez (3%), Nomar Garciaparra (3%)— all of whom played for the Carmines—and Morgan Ensberg (3%).
Monster longshots at Polymarket included George Lombard (2%), Ryan Flaherty (2%), David ‘Big Papi’ Ortiz (2%), Brad Ausmus (1%), A.J. Ellis (1%).
➤Trading Thoughts: If we're heaping praise on Mattingly for righting the ship in Philadelphia, then we have to do the same for the more unassuming Chad Tracy. The Red Sox just reeled off a 15-game win streak and climbed from the depths of diamond despair back into the AL East race.
Boston went from 32-46 on June 24 to 54-50 on July 28—a 22-4 run—to pull within 7 ½ games of the Rays after Boston finally lost a game, the second game of a DH to the Orioles. The team fired Alex Cora on April 25 and brought Tracy up from AAA Worcester, and all he has done is magic.
⚾MLB: Next Boston Red Sox Manager Pick: Chad Tracy, Yes, 45¢
AL Rookie of the Year Futures Update, Review
It looks like Tigers sensation Kevin McGonigle (77%, Polymarket) will be named the 2026 AL Rookie of the Year, but there is a lot of baseball left and who knows what happens between now and October. Chicago slugger Munetaka Murakami (8% Friday, Polymarket; 20% Sunday, Kalshi) would be closer, if not for an injury.
At Polymarket, Guardians OF Chase DeLauter (4%), Blue Jays IF Kazuma Okamoto (3%), Orioles 1B Samuel Basallo (3%), Guardians 2B Travis Bazzana (2%), Red Sox SP Payton Tolle (2%), Yankees OF Spencer Jones (1%), and Yankees teammate P Carlos Lagrange (1%) all follow.
The real longshots are Orioles OF Dylan Beavers (1%), talented Rays SS Carson Williams (1%), Twins OF Walker Jenkins (1%), Blue Jays SP Trey Yesavage (1%), and Guardians Parker Messick.
➤Trading Thoughts: The 21-year-old McGonigle (5-9, 187) has good numbers at the plate (.282/9/35), but there is enough time for others to catch him. Murakami (.230/20/42 is back for the Pale Hose—he competed in the HR Derby—and Chicago is in the thick of the AL Central race.
Kazuma Okamoto (6-1, 220) has better stats (.226/22/62) than fellow Japanese import Murakami and leads Toronto in HR, while Baltimore’s Samuel Basallo has nice numbers (.241/16/46). I would rather have 6 ‘Yes’ (3 Murakami + 3 Okamoto) contracts (73.44¢) than 1 McGonigle (77¢, 7/23).
Last year, A’s 1B Nick Kurtz won the AL ROY after Yankees P Luis Gil (2024), Orioles IF Gunnar Henderson (2023), and Mariners CF Julio Rodríguez (2022) were the recipients in the Junior Circuit.
⚾2026 AL Rookie of the Year Winner Picks: Munetaka Murakami, Yes 20¢, Kaz Okamoto, Yes, 5¢ (Kalshi)
English Premier League: 2027 Champions Preview
The English Premier League (EPL) kicks off in four weeks, and traders have already dumped a healthy $1,544,411 of volume into a polymarket that won’t be settled until next June, meaning your money will be tied up quite a while no matter who you back or fade in the Premiership.
Bukayo Saka and defending champions Arsenal (37%) lead the pack, followed by Erling Haaland and Manchester City (30%)—the Kalshi and Polymarket of the EPL. Following are the usual suspects: Liverpool (12%), Manchester United (12%), Chelsea (10%), and Tottenham Hotspur (3%).
Longshots to win the league are Aston Villa (2%). Newcastle United. Fulham, AFC Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Everton, Brentford, Leeds United, Nottingham Forest, Sunderland, and promoted Coventry City, Hull City, and Ipswich Town were all trading <1% on Sunday, July 26.
➤Trading Thoughts: Aston Villa never gets any respect, much like Rodney Dangerfield. Last year, the Villains went 19-8-11 (W-D-L) in the Premier League, nabbing 4th place and qualifying for the lucrative UEFA Champions League tournament, while also winning the 2026 UEFA Europa League.
Villa has a great GK in Argentinian Emiliano Martinez, Ollie Watkins, Ross Barkley, Tammy Abraham, Emiliano Buendía, and signed AMF Johan Manzambi, CMF João Gomes, and CB Modou Kéba Cissé, but lost much with Morgan Rogers (Chelsea) and Youri Tielemans (MUFC) departing.
⚽2027 English Premier League Champion Picks: Manchester City, Yes 30¢, Aston Villa, Yes 1.7¢, Liverpool, No 89¢, Chelsea, No 91¢
Spanish LALIGA: 2027 Champions Preview
The Spanish Primera League (LALIGA) will begin play on August 15 with Matchday 1 of 38 as Lamine Yamal and Barcelona look to defend their league title. Neither Barça nor Real Madrid play in the opening week, but start August 22 (RM vs. Espanyol) and August 23 (Barcelona vs. Elche).
At Polymarket, Futures traders have been buying ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ contracts in the ‘LALIGA 2027 Champion’ market, with Barcelona being given a 54% chance of repeating this season, followed by rivals Real Madrid (42%), Atlético Madrid (5%), and Athletic Bilbao (1%).
Traders aren’t giving the other 16 clubs—Celta, Sevilla, Espanyol, Getafe, Elche, Valencia, Villarreal, Levante, Osasuna, Betis, Málaga, Alavés, Real Sociedad and promoted sides Racing Santander, Deportivo La Coruña, and Rayo Vallecano—much of a chance, and rightfully so.
➤Trading Thoughts: This is always a two-team race, no matter how much we respect and romanticize Atlético Madrid and no matter how good Athletic Bilbao is, and maybe the world’s best GK—Unai Simón—the Golden Glove winner at the recently wrapped 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Robert Lewandowski, Pedri, Raphinha, and Barça got the better of Kylian Mbappé, Jude Bellingham, Vini Jr., Thibaut Courtois, and Madrid last year, going 3-1, winning in the Copa del Rey (3-2) and Supercopa de España Finals (5-2), and painting Los Blancos black once in the Regular Season (4-3).
The Catalans welcome Anthony Gordon (NUFC) and have a rising star in Pau Cubarsí (WC Outstanding Young Player). At the same time, Madrid signed MF Bernardo Silva (MCFC), LB Marc Cuccarella (CFC)—who Barça rejected—CB Ibrahima Konaté (LIV), and RB Denzel Dumfries (Inter Milan).
⚽2027 Spanish LALIGA Champions Pick: Real Madrid, Yes 42¢
➠”In the next issue of The Prediction Report, we’ll look at Kalshi’s beef with Netflix and the prediction market adding precious metals trading, two more 2026 Emmy Awards picks, and deliver previews for the NL Manager of the Year, the NCAAF Big Ten conference, and French Ligue 1 and Italian Serie A,”