Sunday Morning Coffee — May 31, 2026 — Sunday Morning Scramble.
By Roy Berger, London, UK.
Good morning. Today we have our Sunday coffee and biscuits in London at the legendary Wolseley on Piccadilly. I know I wrote back in February that after 30 combined business and personal London visits over the years I’d have no reason to return after our kids and granddaughter moved back to Los Angeles this spring. Well, this is another “never say never” for me much like never again playing old guy baseball but fully expecting to be in Pirates uniform come December. This journey was a late scheduled addition, summoned out of the bullpen to come over and represent Medjet (medjet.com) in our transport renewal conversations with brokers and underwriters at Lloyd’s of London, something I did for 20 years while still CEO of the company. Now a corporate director, coming off the bench, it’s an easy transition to make. I like London and I like visiting with the blokes and lasses in the Lloyd’s marketplace. In the meantime, before the Monday meetings begin, let’s Scramble:
For those old enough you might remember the National Airlines braggadocio slogan from the 1960s— Is that anyway to run an airline? You bet it is! Well, it’s something British Airways doesn’t subscribe to. A round trip ticket from Vegas to Heathrow a month before departure—$9K. Incredibly, that didn’t include a reserved seat which you can purchase for $156 each way or take your chances at check-in. Just to irritate a bit further, an email from BA five hours before departure that there was no Wi-Fi aboard the aircraft for the 10-hour journey. Is this anyway to run an airline? Shit no it isn’t.
Meanwhile and fortuitously like she knew I would be Wi-Fi less, a package arrived on Thursday, the day before I left. It was from Heidi Evans, with whom I had an unreciprocated teenage crush on during summer camp in 1969. I had no chance. Heidi’s dreams were about the rad camp athletic director and Art Shamsky who played for and was about to win a World Championship with the ‘69 Miracle Mets. Both were unavailable. I was but that didn’t move her needle. Heidi went on to a star-studded journalistic career which included a Pulitzer Prize in 2007. She just co-wrote, with Michael Feinstein and Josh Getlin, “Kids, Wait Till You Hear This”, the Liza Minnelli story which hit number one on the New York Times best seller list this past March. It’s not something that would normally be on my reading tray but when you know the author it doesn’t matter. I’ll finish it on the way home but so far, so good. Heidi, despite her incredible lack of judgment fifty-seven summers ago, and I are still close friends today. I love it when good things happen to good people.
As England now prepares for the World Cup and the expectation of the Brits to make a deep run, the showcase of the very busy English sports calendar ended last weekend with Arsenal winning the English Premier League (EPL) soccer championship, the first for the Gunners in 22 years. Good for them and their rowdy supporters. As great as the EPL and their fans are, the league doesn’t use a playoff system to declare a champion. Instead, whoever is atop the standings, or the table as the Brits reference, is crowned champion. Arsenal won the league on an off day when second place Manchester City played to a tie against Bournemouth making the Gunners impossible to catch. They watched from a pub or their couch or wherever but not on the field. Maybe it’s just me, but eliminating those spontaneous on-field celebrations, loses a little bit of the luster.
However, as far as I’m concerned, the best part of the Premier League is not who wins, unless it’s Chelsea or Fulham, it’s who loses. The EPL has a great system called relagation. The bottom three teams at the end of the August-May season get booted out of the league and relegated to lower play the next season in a lesser league, and have to work their way back and replace the next year’s teams who get relegated. Burnley and Wolverhampton are gone and surprisingly so is West Ham, an EPL staple for the past 14 years. If we did the same in American sports, for the basketball and hockey seasons just completed, New Jersey, Indiana and Washington in the NBA would be gone. That is one sure way to stop NBA teams from tanking for a higher draft choice. In the NHL Vancouver would be bye-bye along with two of the original six franchises, the Blackhawks and Rangers. Truly, in the EPL, every game matters.
Back to the homeland as the NBA and NHL seasons advance to the championship round. It’s Special K’s for me— the Knicks and the Knights. I’m not much of an NBA fan anymore but have been a Knicks fan since I was a kid. Following them regularly has become dormant; they haven’t won since 1973, but old habits die hard and I’m certainly cheering for the good guys against San Antonio to win it all. Even pulled out an old Knicks tee with moth holes accumulated over the past 53 years. However, I am still a rabid hockey fan and never more than now as the hometown Vegas Golden Knights will be playing for the Stanley Cup against Carolina. I’ve been a season ticket holder of the Knights for all of their nine seasons, in fact even before we moved to Las Vegas, which made me the only season member in the state of Alabama that first 2017-18 season. This Knights’ run has surprised me coming off a lackluster last couple of months of the regular season. This team is now exceptional, something very special, and it should be a fun couple of weeks. And as a little teaser for the final round, SMC took Vegas +1200 to win the Cup as the playoffs began.
Andi and I went to see Sebastian Maniscalco at Wynn last Saturday night. Funny guy, great storyteller. Driving down Las Vegas Blvd was what looked like a temporary outdoor arena across the Strip at Resorts World on the site of the former Stardust. We had no idea what it was until reading about it the next morning. Just to prove there is something for everyone and nothing is off limits, the structure was the site of something called the Enhanced Games, a competition where the competitors are allowed, if not encouraged, to take performance enhancing substances in the pursuit of breaking world records. There were 42 ‘athletes’ taking part in the event, where nothing is off the table. The total prize pool is a cool $25 million. Included is a million dollar bonus for any competitor that breaks a world record. Four of the 42 chose to compete ‘clean.’ The public is not welcome, instead the 2,500 spectators were by invitation only. No word on whether Jose Canseco or Lance Armstrong threw out the first needle.
What TSA lines? Starting next month travelers leaving Boston’s Logan Airport and flying Delta or JetBlue can clear TSA 25 miles from their departure gates. Framingham, MA, will be the site of the new security clearance where passengers can check their bags, march through TSA protocol and get on a shuttle bus, then dropped off at the terminal inside of security. Eight such locations around the country have been authorized for this experimental program.
And if you are flying get those extra shekels ready. Over the past year airfares have increased by 21% with no relief in sight.
Driving isn’t that economical either. Costs for both new and pre-owned vehicles, never mind insurance rates, are at an all-time high pricing most out of the market. As a result, the average car on the road in the U.S. is almost 13 years old, an historical high.
There has been a slight shake-up on the prediction wagering markets for the 2028 presidential election. According to Kalshi of the $40m already wagered, Marco Rubio has jumped ahead of J.D. Vance with 19% of the money saying Rubio will win the White House while 17% is on Vance. Gavin Newsom is next with 15%. Then it drops significantly with 6% favoring both AOC and Kamala. And for those not willing to give up the ship, 2% of the monies say Donald J. Trump will finagle the system and somehow will stay in the seat he’s in.
And you think you have internet problems? Servers in Iran, throughout the whole country, have been down for the past 93 days.
And speaking of the internet, I really could use more e-mails like the one I received from my travel professional last week telling me that our cruise in Asia next May has been reduced by $5K. If I was vacationing in Iran, I would have never known.
Not a bad gig if you can get it. New York City’s Hotel and Gaming Trades Council negotiated a new eight-year contract with 250 of the city’s hotels that by year six will have housekeepers earning over $100,000 a year with free health care for the members and their families.
More union talk this time from Massachusetts. Last week Hub state drivers for Uber and Lyft became the first in the nation to certify a union. This will be worth keeping an eye on as ride share honchos have become notorious for changing compensation schedules for their drivers at their whim.
Our SMC of two weeks ago on the virtual demise of horse racing’s Triple Crown (royberger.com; Triple Crown Adieu-May 17, 2026) provoked some thoughtful conversation about the schedule and related animal welfare issues running horses again two weeks after the Kentucky Derby for the Preakness and then three weeks later at the Belmont. Consensus for all of us without a vote is to run the Kentucky Derby on the traditional first Saturday of May; the Preakness Stakes the first Saturday of June and then the Belmont Stakes in early July. Noted Vegas thoroughbred owner Barry Lieberman said to make it easy and schedule the Belmont every year on July 4. What a holiday bang that would be with a well-rested Triple Crown contender. It’s well past time to make the Triple Crown series great again.
The first season of Your Friends and Neighbors with Jon Hamm on Apple really went nowhere. Season two is now streaming and with the addition of James Marsden to the cast, the storyline and the neighborhood gets very interesting. Also, basketball fans will enjoy Soul Power on Prime. If you remember the old American Basketball Association from the late 1960s and early 70s, you’ll love this. Even if you don’t, the league that gave us the three-point basket and the red-white-blue basketball revolutionized the sport making the NBA the showcase league it is today. It’s four episodes and a fun watch.
And finally, some parental cannabis unrest. Throughout New York State in April, daily weed sales passed $5 million for the first time since becoming legal in 2022. However, that’s not the issue du jour in the Apple. Some parents are irate that pot ads are airing on local New York Mets telecasts at the risk of influencing their kids. Come on mom and dad, cut the kids a break. The Mets this season are among the worst teams in baseball. The only chance your kids have of staying interested is with a nice buzz.
I’m proud that Medjet is sponsoring Sunday Morning Coffee. I spent 20 wonderful years with Medjet in Birmingham, Alabama, and can tell you unequivocally they are the standard-bearer for medical assistance membership programs. A talented staff, who cares about its members, is at the forefront of the company’s success. Whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, domestic or international, a Medjet membership should be an important part of your travel portfolio before you leave home. Check out the Medjet website at medjet.com or just tap on the Medjet logo and you’ll be able to get a look at Medjet’s services, rules and regulations, pricing, and an overview of the organization. And remember, any opinions expressed in Sunday Morning Coffee content or comments belong to the author and not the sponsor. Safe travels with your Medjet membership! — Roy Berger