There isn’t much doubt regarding who baseball fans will be cheering for during the 2026 World Series: The Milwaukee Brewers are the team pretty much everyone wants to see win their first Fall Classic.
According to a recent Casino Guru survey of 2,000 MLB fans, 66% want the Brewers to win their first championship, compared with roughly one in three backing the Tampa Bay Rays. Even more telling, 69% believe Milwaukee will actually lift the trophy.
That support stretches well beyond Wisconsin. Fans of 26 of the 28 MLB teams surveyed are rooting for the Brewers, including 72% of Red Sox fans, 74% of Astros fans and 68% of Yankees fans. Yes, even fans of the Cubs — Milwaukee’s cross-state rivals — are leaning toward the Brewers, with 57% backing them.
The numbers suggest this World Series is about more than which team has the better roster. The Brewers have become the sentimental favorite, and Tampa Bay will have to deal with that narrative as the Fall Classic gets underway.
Rays Can Use Their Underdog Status as Motivation
The Rays aren’t exactly walking into this World Series with the public behind them. If anything, they’re playing the role of the team that has to spoil the party.
Only 34% of surveyed fans want Tampa Bay to win, while 31% predict the Rays will actually claim the championship. The Brewers have the support of most fans across the country, including in major states such as California, Illinois, New York and Texas. Florida is one of the few exceptions, with 81% of respondents there rooting for the Rays.
Still, public opinion doesn’t decide a seven-game series. And if Tampa Bay can turn that lack of support into motivation, the team has an opportunity to make the national consensus look foolish.
The Rays have their own history to make, with a first World Series title waiting if they can get past Milwaukee. Being the less popular team might not seem like much of an advantage, but it can give a club a simple message: nobody expects you to win, so go prove them wrong.
The Brewers have the crowd’s affection. The Rays can make the most of being the team standing in their way.
Brewers Have Waited Long Enough for This Opportunity
There’s a reason Milwaukee has become such an easy team to root for. The franchise began as the expansion Seattle Pilots in 1969 before relocating to Milwaukee and becoming the Brewers in 1970. The team has been chasing its first World Series championship ever since.
Milwaukee last appeared in the Fall Classic in 1982, when the Brewers lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. That means 44 years have passed since the franchise last had a chance to win it all.
For a fanbase that has waited this long, simply reaching the World Series is a major milestone. Winning it would finally deliver the championship that has eluded the franchise for generations.
The survey results reinforce that appeal. Nearly half of respondents believe the Brewers have the better fanbase, while just 10% give that distinction to Tampa Bay. Another 42% say the two fanbases are equally good.
Of course, popularity won’t help Milwaukee get outs or score runs. The Brewers still have to deliver on the field. But they enter this series with a rare combination: most fans want them to win, and most believe they will.
After 44 years without a World Series appearance, Milwaukee has earned the opportunity. Now comes the hard part — turning all that goodwill into a championship.
Brewers Overwhelming Favorites Among Fans to Win World Series