August 01, 2026

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Good morning, and welcome to August. We hope you enjoy the month of perfectly ripe stone fruit, not being able to reach your European colleagues, and celebrating Abby’s and Neal’s birthdays (you can just send our gifts to the office).

—Holly Van Leuven, Dave Lozo, Matty Merritt, Sam Klebanov, Abby Rubenstein

In today’s newsletter, we’ll look at:

FIFA calling off its private investment plan
New York accusing Kalshi of an “illegal gambling operation”
Why the government is banning Roomba imports

Markets

Nasdaq

25,373.85

+1.00%

S&P

7,489.72

+0.70%

Dow

52,485.03

+0.53%

10-Year

4.745%

+8.0 bps

Bitcoin

$62,975.8

-2.62%

Apple

$308.91

-7.35%

Data is provided by

*Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 5:30pm ET. Here's what these numbers mean.

Markets: Stocks managed to eke out a win yesterday, following a week with more drama than Days of Our Lives, in which bonds hit their highest yield since 2007 after the Fed decided to keep rates steady without tipping its hand about what comes next.
When it comes to Big Tech, Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet added close to $1.5 trillion in combined market value this week after reporting strong cloud growth. But Apple, Meta, and Tesla fell this week. Apple, in particular, plunged yesterday after delivering a lackluster forecast and concerns about memory shortage.

OWN GOAL

FIFA drops unpopular plan to sell World Cup stake

FIFA President Gianni Infantino looks on after the FIFA World Cup 2026 Final match

Marvin Ibo Guengoer/Getty Images

Like a ref after reviewing the VAR, FIFA President Gianni Infantino changed his mind mid-game yesterday, officially recalling his proposal to sell a 20% stake in future World Cup profits to private equity after resounding condemnation of it from inside and outside the sport.

After delivering a highly successful and lucrative North American World Cup, Infantino seemed poised to coast into a fourth consecutive term as FIFA’s president. Now, he’s hoping to hang onto his job after unveiling a plan on Tuesday that would have:

Spun off the money-making parts of FIFA—including proceeds from tournaments like the World Cup, broadcasting deals, and hospitality—into a new subsidiary distinct from FIFA’s nonprofit mission.
Valued that subsidiary at $20 billion to sell a 20% stake to a private equity group led by Joshua Kushner (brother of President Trump’s son-in-law) for $4.2 billion.

Forced to play defense

The backlash came fierce and fast once Infantino revealed the proposal to FIFA’s 211 member nations. On Thursday, it reached a fever…pitch when UEFA, the European soccer body, vowed to boycott all FIFA events unless the plan went the way of the dodo bird.

Still, Infantino began Friday defiant. Yesterday morning, FIFA released a statement that said “nobody is selling football” and blamed “erroneous reporting in the media” for the proposal’s negative reception.

Un-friendly Friday: But then, the Asian Soccer Federation, known as AFC, announced it was standing with the North American, Central American, and Caribbean soccer federations in denouncing the plan.

And internally, Infantino’s advisor Carlos Cordeiro, a former Goldman Sachs banker, quit his role at FIFA, calling the plan “a bad deal.” And FIFA’s COO all but dared Infantino to fire him, telling the Associated Press that the org’s president had “deceived” the staff with the sell-off plan, calling it “the project of one person.”

That one person, Infantino, then announced yesterday evening that FIFA was backing away from the deal. “Our purpose has always been—and will always be—to unite and improve. As a result, this proposal will not proceed,” he said. It remains unclear if Infantino will be backing away from FIFA.—HVL, DL

Reader poll

Should FIFA President Gianni Infantino resign?

Yes.
No.
I don’t care.

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World

Tour de headlines

Getty Images

⚖️ NY sues Kalshi, saying it runs an “illegal gambling operation.” If you wagered that the state of New York would sue prediction market platform Kalshi and accuse it of being a gambling operation that’s not licensed by the state gaming commission, you’re in luck. The state lodged a suit yesterday, seeking the forfeiture of allegedly illegal gains, restitution to customers, and fines, which could total $36 billion. It’s the latest move in a battle over the regulation of prediction markets—which unlike traditional sportsbooks are overseen federally by the CFTC. Kalshi, which is headquartered in New York, called the suit “political theater” and said, “States can’t just shut down a federally licensed exchange.”

🌍 Hamas agrees to disarm—but only after Israel withdraws from Gaza. A day after President Trump announced that Hamas had agreed to a deal for “complete disarmament,” the group confirmed that it had agreed to the deal. That would be a major breakthrough for the stalled peace agreement between Israel and Hamas, but Hamas and Israel appeared at odds yesterday over how this might happen. Hamas said it would begin disarming only after Israel withdrew from Gaza and agreed to the creation of a Palestinian state, while unnamed Israeli officials told news outlets that Hamas would need to disarm before the withdrawal.

💬 The Fed officials who voted to hike rates say action is needed on inflation. When the Fed opted to leave interest rates unchanged this week, three officials dissented, marking the first time since 2016 that three members of the rate-setting committee have dissented in the same direction. And yesterday, they explained why. The trio issued separate statements that noted inflation has been above the Fed’s 2% target for five years and said a rate hike is needed to address it. The statements came after financial markets reacted badly to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh not saying much during his press conference on Wednesday about the rationale for the rate decision or what actions the central bank might take going forward.—AR

bot ban

Your Roomba is an enemy of the state

Chinese humanoid robots lined up on left, Roomba cleaning a floor on right

VCG/Getty Images, Roomba

The tiny little robot getting trapped under your couch while attempting to suck up balls of cat hair is now being banned from entering the US as a national security threat. The FCC issued a ban this week on new, foreign-made humanoid robots, quadrupeds (like those robot dogs), and a broad swath of bots that can recognize their surroundings—including robovacs and sidewalk delivery robots.

In response, China threatened retaliation, claiming the ban “severely damages China–US economic and trade stability,” according to a statement translated by CNBC. The ban doesn’t actually name China, but you’d be hard pressed to find another country that churns out as many sophisticated, inexpensive robots or robot parts. The country currently controls about 85% of the global humanoid robot market, according to a recent research report by Barclays cited by the Associated Press.

Besides Terminator-level destruction, what is there to fear? The Trump administration cited privacy concerns related to the technology collecting sensitive data in homes and public spaces, as well as foreign-made robots threatening US supply chains. While your Roomba may seem harmless, there have been cases of robot vacuums and robot lawn mowers getting hacked.

Security concerns are very real, but…The Verge noted that the ban doesn’t target specific companies or do much to curb data collection. Instead, it creates a blanket ban that many US-based robotics companies—which rely on Chinese parts—are nervous will obliterate their own supply chain.—MM

This week’s question

What’s a movie you never tire of rewatching?

Sam’s answer to get the juices flowing: “Every New Year, I rewatch the iconic 1976 Soviet holiday rom-com, The Irony of Fate, about a man who accidentally boards a plane blackout drunk and then goes to sleep in an apartment at his own street address, but in the wrong city. Hilarious and poignantly wistful without being schmaltzy, it recently inspired a terrible American remake.”

Submit your response here.

recs

Take a peek at the most charming main streets in the US.
A quiz that determines just how weird you are.
Watch the moment Ben Affleck won a million dollars (for charity).
Feel like a billionaire with this scented candle in your home.**

In this episode of The Intelligence Shift, host Dan Priest is joined by the cofounder and CEO of Asteria Film to discuss developing new filmmaking tools powered by AI. Tune in.*

^{*A message from our sponsor. **This is a product recommendation from our writers. When you buy through this link, Morning Brew may earn a commission.}

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Brew Crossword: Your sample clue from our biggest puzzle of the week is “Who hearer.” Play the Crossword here.

Open House

Welcome to Open House, the only newsletter section that can see the vision of what a home could truly achieve with colors other than gold and white. We’ll give you a few facts about a listing and you try to guess the price.

Zillow

Today’s two-story house is in Santa Ana, CA, and while the interior might have the decor of a 2009 Charlotte Russe, the outside is pretty charming. Amenities include:

3 beds, 2 baths
AI smart toilet in the basement
Bedroom ceiling flatscreen

How much for your California dream home?

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Answer

$1.1 million

Word of the Day

Today’s Word of the Day is: poignantly, meaning “in a sharply felt manner.” Thanks to Jake from Bristol, UK, and several other readers, for the heart-piercing suggestion. Submit another Word of the Day here.

✳︎ A Note From Frontieras

This is a paid advertisement for Frontieras’ Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular at https://invest.frontieras.com/.

Reservation of the ticker symbol is not a guarantee that we will be listed on the Nasdaq. Listing on the Nasdaq is subject to approvals.

Under Regulation A+, a company has the ability to change its share price by up to 20%, without requalifying the offering with the SEC.

*Sources: The global market for our products is worth a combined value of over $2.1 trillion.

Written by Abigail Rubenstein, Dave Lozo, Matty Merritt, Sam Klebanov, and Holly Van Leuven

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☕️ Forced to play defense