Latest news with #NFLSuperBowl
The Guardian
01-04-2025
- The Guardian
Suspects of Super Bowl reporter's death planned drug-and-steal schemes for years
Two people linked to the alleged drugging death and robbery of a television sports reporter found dead in his hotel room days before February's NFL Super Bowl had spent years using text messages to evidently coordinate furtively incapacitating others with pharmaceuticals and stealing from their financial accounts, according to multiple law enforcement sources. While investigators have not publicly elaborated on the relationship between the pair arrested in connection with the death of Adan Manzano, 27, outside of New Orleans, the Guardian has confirmed that Danette Colbert and Rickey White have previously listed the same home address in legal documents. And at some point in the months prior to Manzano's death, Colbert accused White of domestic violence, implying a romantic involvement between the two. Authorities investigating a case which has made national headlines booked Colbert, 48, with second-degree murder, suspecting she had given Manzano alcohol mixed with the pharmaceutical Xanax to incapacitate him before he died. She was also booked with stealing Manzano's cellphone and credit card, with White accused of acting as Colbert's accomplice to the theft allegations in particular. According to various sources familiar with the investigation, at least three times in the four weeks before Manzano's death, Colbert and White texted about the personal identification numbers of other people's financial accounts, including one which showed a balance of more than $95,000 on an ATM's screen. Those messages formed part of a broader dialogue between the two dating back to at least 2022 in which they also mentioned at least three more pin numbers associated with other such accounts. In some of the messages, Colbert alludes to needing 'knock outs' or wishing she had 'KO' – which detectives have interpreted to mean pharmaceutical pills that if mixed with alcohol could render people unconscious as well as unable to resist a robbery. At least one message from Colbert describes her waiting for a man to fall asleep before going to the ATM and reuniting with White, 34. Another message to White recounted how Colbert was handed a cellphone by someone who was extremely intoxicated and failed to immediately notice that Colbert sent herself $8,000 from a cash-related application on the device. Police in charge of investigating Manzano's death came to suspect Colbert was involved after finding surveillance video which captured her entering his hotel room in Kenner, Louisiana, near New Orleans' airport, the last time he was seen alive during the early morning of 5 February. Kenner police said they later caught Colbert with Manzano's cellphone as well as the credit card he used to check into his hotel before meeting her during a night out in New Orleans. Furthermore, police have said they seized alprazolam – a benzodiazepine whose brand name is Xanax – at Colbert's home in the New Orleans suburb of Slidell after finding Manzano dead and face-down in a pillow. Coroner Dr Gerry Cvitanovich has said preliminary autopsy findings have the cause of death for Manzano listed as the combined toxic effects of Xanax, which can be used as a sedative, and alcohol, along with positional asphyxia. Neither Manzano nor Colbert had a prescription for Xanax, police have said. Meanwhile, sources told the Guardian that Colbert and White corresponded about a pin while she was with Manzano, about 20 minutes before she went into his hotel room and later left alone. The sources said Colbert and White exchanged about two dozen phone calls that morning. She allegedly used Manzano's card for a purchase of less than $9 at a local convenience store. Colbert also purportedly tried to use the card on an ATM there but could not complete any transaction after exceeding the number of allowable pin entry attempts. Kenner police soon jailed Colbert with stealing from and defrauding Manzano specifically. On 18 March, they added a count of second-degree murder, which can carry life imprisonment. Sources said Colbert admitted to investigators who questioned her that she had gone to Manzano's room – but she sought to persuade them that the only way she would have his phone or credit card would be if he dropped them in her car while she gave him a ride to his hotel. Police in Hollywood, Florida, captured White on 14 March on the same theft and fraud counts against Colbert. He was later extradited to the jail in Jefferson parish, Louisiana, whose jurisdiction includes Kenner, and could spend years in prison if eventually convicted as charged. Neither Colbert nor White was immediately granted bail, with authorities citing five felony convictions in Louisiana alone for Colbert. They have also referred to a well-documented history for Colbert of allegedly drugging victims, stealing from them and then avoiding substantial punishment. White, too, has an extensive criminal history, including pleading guilty to misdemeanor theft. One mark on his record involved his pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of illegal marijuana possession in 2023. The documents in that case provide an important clue about his ties to Colbert: he listed her home address in Slidell as his, and that is where police investigating Manzano's death would later find Xanax. Additionally, sometime in 2024, sources said that Colbert filed a domestic violence complaint against White with the St Tammany parish sheriff's office in Louisiana, whose jurisdiction includes Slidell. Deputies obtained a warrant to arrest White in that case, and it was pending at the time of his Manzano-related arrest in Florida. Manzano was originally from Mexico and graduated from Kansas State University. He developed a reputation for covering the Kansas City area's various sports teams for that community's Spanish-language Telemundo affiliate. The widowed father of a two-year-old girl had traveled to the New Orleans area to cover the Kansas City Chiefs' 9 February showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at the Caesars Superdome. The Telemundo journalist's colleagues realized something had gone wrong with Manzano when he missed a work meeting. That prompted them to alert the staff at his hotel, who found Manzano's body while conducting a wellness check on him.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Yahoo
Suspects of Super Bowl reporter's death planned drug-and-steal schemes for years
Two people linked to the alleged drugging death and robbery of a television sports reporter found dead in his hotel room days before February's NFL Super Bowl had spent years using text messages to evidently coordinate furtively incapacitating others with pharmaceuticals and stealing from their financial accounts, according to multiple law enforcement sources. While investigators have not publicly elaborated on the relationship between the pair arrested in connection with the death of Adan Manzano, 27, outside of New Orleans, the Guardian has confirmed that Danette Colbert and Rickey White have previously listed the same home address in legal documents. And at some point in the months prior to Manzano's death, Colbert accused White of domestic violence, implying a romantic involvement between the two. Related: US woman faces second-degree murder charges in death of Super Bowl reporter Authorities investigating a case which has made national headlines booked Colbert, 48, with second-degree murder, suspecting she had given Manzano alcohol mixed with the pharmaceutical Xanax to incapacitate him before he died. She was also booked with stealing Manzano's cellphone and credit card, with White accused of acting as Colbert's accomplice to the theft allegations in particular. According to various sources familiar with the investigation, at least three times in the four weeks before Manzano's death, Colbert and White texted about the personal identification numbers of other people's financial accounts, including one which showed a balance of more than $95,000 on an ATM's screen. Those messages formed part of a broader dialogue between the two dating back to at least 2022 in which they also mentioned at least three more pin numbers associated with other such accounts. In some of the messages, Colbert alludes to needing 'knock outs' or wishing she had 'KO' – which detectives have interpreted to mean pharmaceutical pills that if mixed with alcohol could render people unconscious as well as unable to resist a robbery. At least one message from Colbert describes her waiting for a man to fall asleep before going to the ATM and reuniting with White, 34. Another message to White recounted how Colbert was handed a cellphone by someone who was extremely intoxicated and failed to immediately notice that Colbert sent herself $8,000 from a cash-related application on the device. Police in charge of investigating Manzano's death came to suspect Colbert was involved after finding surveillance video which captured her entering his hotel room in Kenner, Louisiana, near New Orleans' airport, the last time he was seen alive during the early morning of 5 February. Kenner police said they later caught Colbert with Manzano's cellphone as well as the credit card he used to check into his hotel before meeting her during a night out in New Orleans. Furthermore, police have said they seized alprazolam – a benzodiazepine whose brand name is Xanax – at Colbert's home in the New Orleans suburb of Slidell after finding Manzano dead and face-down in a pillow. Coroner Dr Gerry Cvitanovich has said preliminary autopsy findings have the cause of death for Manzano listed as the combined toxic effects of Xanax, which can be used as a sedative, and alcohol, along with positional asphyxia. Neither Manzano nor Colbert had a prescription for Xanax, police have said. Meanwhile, sources told the Guardian that Colbert and White corresponded about a pin while she was with Manzano, about 20 minutes before she went into his hotel room and later left alone. The sources said Colbert and White exchanged about two dozen phone calls that morning. She allegedly used Manzano's card for a purchase of less than $9 at a local convenience store. Colbert also purportedly tried to use the card on an ATM there but could not complete any transaction after exceeding the number of allowable pin entry attempts. Kenner police soon jailed Colbert with stealing from and defrauding Manzano specifically. On 18 March, they added a count of second-degree murder, which can carry life imprisonment. Sources said Colbert admitted to investigators who questioned her that she had gone to Manzano's room – but she sought to persuade them that the only way she would have his phone or credit card would be if he dropped them in her car while she gave him a ride to his hotel. Police in Hollywood, Florida, captured White on 14 March on the same theft and fraud counts against Colbert. He was later extradited to the jail in Jefferson parish, Louisiana, whose jurisdiction includes Kenner, and could spend years in prison if eventually convicted as charged. Neither Colbert nor White was immediately granted bail, with authorities citing five felony convictions in Louisiana alone for Colbert. They have also referred to a well-documented history for Colbert of allegedly drugging victims, stealing from them and then avoiding substantial punishment. White, too, has an extensive criminal history, including pleading guilty to misdemeanor theft. One mark on his record involved his pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of illegal marijuana possession in 2023. The documents in that case provide an important clue about his ties to Colbert: he listed her home address in Slidell as his, and that is where police investigating Manzano's death would later find Xanax. Related: US woman faces second-degree murder charges in death of Super Bowl reporter Additionally, sometime in 2024, sources said that Colbert filed a domestic violence complaint against White with the St Tammany parish sheriff's office in Louisiana, whose jurisdiction includes Slidell. Deputies obtained a warrant to arrest White in that case, and it was pending at the time of his Manzano-related arrest in Florida. Manzano was originally from Mexico and graduated from Kansas State University. He developed a reputation for covering the Kansas City area's various sports teams for that community's Spanish-language Telemundo affiliate. The widowed father of a two-year-old girl had traveled to the New Orleans area to cover the Kansas City Chiefs' 9 February showdown against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at the Caesars Superdome. The Telemundo journalist's colleagues realized something had gone wrong with Manzano when he missed a work meeting. That prompted them to alert the staff at his hotel, who found Manzano's body while conducting a wellness check on him.
South China Morning Post
17-03-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
How record-breaking broadcasting rights for major sports leagues are opening new investment avenues
Recently, major sports leagues across the world have begun lucrative, record-breaking broadcasting deals. The English Premier League's current cycle for domestic TV rights came in at £6.7 billion (HK$67.31 billion). The National Basketball Association (NBA) last year inked deals totalling US$76 billion – more than three times the previous package at US$24 billion – for the next 11 years. Advertisement The fact that broadcasters are paying top dollar shows how in demand sports content continues to be, and is a reflection of rising valuations across the board for sports teams and leagues. Standard Chartered Bank's global head of wealth solutions, deposits and mortgages, and chief client officer Samir Subberwal links the two: 'One of the reasons the National Football League has been growing at a tremendous pace – 16-17 per cent compound annual growth rate over the past 10 years – is the growth of media contract value,' he noted. The National Football League (NFL) signed its current media deals totalling US$110 billion across five contracts running from 2022 to 2033. The English Premier League's current cycle for domestic TV rights came in at £6.7 billion (HK$67.31 billion). Photo: Reuters 'NFL franchises benefit from a highly predictable revenue model, with most revenue streams [being] contractual, recurring or reoccurring in nature, underpinned by strong demand for NFL content,' Subberwal continued. 'Ticket sales, merchandise and local sponsors are also crucial to the revenue of sports franchises, [but] having said that, media contract revenue is much more significant and more sticky compared to other revenue sources.' Major League Baseball leads US sport in terms of revenue growth, with a combined US$7.66 billion in sponsorship revenue for 2024, while the 2025 NFL Super Bowl – which included a performance by rapper Kendrick Lamar – closed over US$800 million in ad revenue for that evening alone. '[This is] a golden opportunity for private wealth today, as clients could not access these [franchises] in the past,' noted Raymond Ang, Standard Chartered Bank's global head for private bank and affluent clients, and head of wealth and retail banking for Greater China and North Asia. 'As team valuations continue to rise, fewer individuals have enough wealth to purchase a team. The NFL's recent amendment of certain rules to keep sales processes competitive opens up the opportunity for [investor access].' Most notably, the NFL began allowing private equity involvement in August 2024. Advertisement According to Subberwal, banks like Standard Chartered prefer managers taking a more diversified approach by investing across the capital structure in both debt and equity, including senior and junior debt, preferred equity and even minority equity stakes in these sports teams.
The Independent
06-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Ladbrokes owner Entain strengthens earnings as it bets on online growth
Coral and Ladbrokes owner Entain has announced stronger yearly earnings as millions of punters bet on the NFL Super Bowl and online gaming picked up the pace in the UK. The business, which is one of the world's largest sports betting and gaming groups, has been steering a turnaround of its financial performance. On Thursday it said it generated underlying earnings, before tax, interest and other costs, of £1.1 billion in 2024, up 12% on the previous year. This was partly driven by online net gaming revenues – the amount of money in the company pockets after paying out winnings to punters – edging higher over the year, and surging by a fifth over the last three months of 2024, compared with 2023. It is expecting online net gaming revenues to grow over 2025, with trading getting off to a good start already this year. British horse race the Grand National was the biggest event for the group in terms of the number of bets placed, with the UK its largest online market. But the NFL Super Bowl in the US came in second, with more than two million bets placed on the even, which drew hundreds of millions of viewers around the world. Entain said it previously lost customers as a result of changes it had to make to align with major changes to UK gambling laws to protect vulnerable customers, introduced in 2023. Chief financial officer Rob Wood said: 'We were grappling with changes in regulation with things like affordability measures. 'Our approach to regulation was tighter controls for customer play, and as a result we were losing customers to things like competition. We've now cycled through that and underlying growth is coming through.' The level of spending per customer on sports and gaming started to grow year on year over the final quarter. Entain, which also owns gaming brands including Foxy Bingo, Gala and PartyCasino, has been working to strengthen its finances after being hit with a £585 million penalty in 2023, agreed with HM Revenue and Customs, to settle charges related to alleged bribery offences in Turkey. The business has also faced turbulence at the top of the ranks, announcing the immediate departure of chief executive Gavin Isaacs in February after less than five months in the role. Mr Wood said the decision for him to step down was 'taken together', adding: 'Sometimes, in business, things don't work out and that's as simple as it was with Gavin for both sides.' Chairwoman Stella David has stepped in to lead the business on a temporary basis, having already led on an interim basis before Mr Isaacs was appointed. Meanwhile, Mr Wood said the company was more 'recession-resilient' than other sectors, as betting tends to be less influenced by wider economic trends and how much money people have in their pockets. He said attracting more women to sports betting and gaming was an area of opportunity for the group, particularly as interest in women's sports like football grows. Shares in Entain were up about 4% on Thursday.
The Independent
05-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Paddy Power owner Flutter eyes profit growth after record Super Bowl betting
Paddy Power and Betfair owner Flutter Entertainment has hailed a strong start to 2025 following record levels of online betting during the NFL Super Bowl, despite punters cashing in on player-friendly results during the season. The gambling giant, which says it is the world's leading online sports betting firm, forecast significant growth this year. It reported revenues topping 14 billion US dollars (£10.9 billion) for 2024, up nearly a fifth compared with the prior year. This growth came despite it warning that the NFL American football season had been the most 'customer friendly' in two decades. Match results that go in the favour of many punters mean betting companies have to pay out more winnings to customers. Despite this, Flutter said its online betting site FanDuel was the top operator in the US and has seen an increase in the frequency that people are playing. Some three million active customers placed nearly 18 million bets during the NFL Super Bowl last month, with 470 million dollars (£367 million) wagered during the day, according to the group. In the UK and Ireland, Flutter said it was boosted by sports results favouring the bookies, particularly in the English Premier League. It also saw Paddy Power enjoy growth in the market amid its sponsorship of the World Darts Championship, which saw English teenager Luke Littler win his first title. Flutter moved its primary main market listing from London to New York last year, although it kept a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange where its shares continue to trade. The firm has rapidly expanded in the US in recent years through its FanDuel sportsbook business as a raft of states have loosened their gambling restrictions. It revealed to investors that it was forecasting major profit growth in 2025 – with adjusted earnings, before tax and other costs, expected to surge nearly threefold to 1.4 billion dollars (£1.1 billion) in the US states it has already been operating in. Total adjusted earnings came in at 2.36 billion dollars (£1.84 billion) for 2024 – and are forecast to jump by a third in the year ahead.
