TMZ Sports - Page 50

Hollywood is taking over New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX ... and the list of celebrities planning on attending the big game Sunday is pretty impressive ... there's actors, comedians, rappers, singers, influencers and more.

Our sources tell us Cardi B, Pete Davidson, Kevin Hart, Jake From State Farm, Russell Wilson and Ciara are expected to be at the Caesars Superdome to watch the Kansas City Chiefs play the Philadelphia Eagles.

Kevin's a Philly guy, Russell plays in the NFL, Cardi's been in NOLA marketing her alcohol brand, State Farm has brand deals with Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce ... and we're told Pete's developed a good relationship with the head of security for the Eagles ... so lots of connections to the game for these celebs.

Taylor Swift is the person LOTS of celebs want to mingle with Sunday in her Super Bowl luxury suite ... but we know one person who is NOT invited -- Blake Lively.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Blake is not on Taylor's list of guests as she watches BF Travis Kelce take a run at 3 rings in a row.

We're told, despite what Blake thinks, their friendship is fractured after a text surfaced where Blake told Justin Baldoni she was Khaleesi (from 'GoT') and hubby Ryan Reynolds and Taylor were her "dragons."

Taylor has not seen Blake in a while ... she's been spending lots of time with Travis and hasn't been in New York recently, but we're told the distance is more than geographic.

TMZ broke the story ... Taylor was royally pissed off and, as a well-connected source close to Taylor told us, she was never her dragon. In fact, although Blake tried to make Justin believe Swift was siding with her over a script dispute, Taylor never had a dog in the fight.

As we reported, Blake had invited Taylor over to her penthouse and Swift had no idea there was a meeting going on between Blake and Justin. Taylor walked in as Justin was leaving, and all she did was tell him she was excited to see his movie.

To add insult to injury, we're told Taylor later learned Blake was name-dropping TS all over town.

Patrick Mahomes doesn't need many pep talks for big games these days -- he is, after all, going for his fourth championship this weekend -- but if he wants one from Dad ... Patrick Mahomes Sr. is giving TMZ Sports a sneak peek into what his message will be!

The elder Mahomes told us on Friday out in New Orleans that if his Chiefs star son leans on him for advice heading into Sunday's tilt with the Philadelphia Eagles ... his note will be simple.

"Players make plays," he said.

The Raiders landing Pete Carroll has generated a ton of excitement for the franchise ... and even their former coach Jon Gruden is hyped up about it -- telling TMZ Sports the Silver and Black nailed the hire.

We caught up with the Super Bowl-winning coach out on the streets of NOLA ahead of Super Bowl LIX ... and he sang the 73-year-old's praises.

"He's a world champion coach," Gruden said. "He's won everywhere he's been. He won it all at USC, he won it all at Seattle and there's no reason he can't put the Silver and Black back."

The Big Game is in the Big Easy and Cardi B is teaming up with a famous booze brand to make history ... in the form of a 350-gallon daiquiri the world has never seen.

Fat Tuesday and Cardi B's Whipshots are getting the party started in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX with the world's biggest daiquiri ... a monstrosity of a cocktail that was six months in the making.

A marvel of engineering, the 350-gallon cocktail lives within a 22-foot tall container made from solid steel. The drink features a Fat Tuesday frozen mix and it's topped off with Whipshots, Cardi's vodka-infused whipped cream.

Jeff Beacher -- the showman behind the famed Beacher's Madhouse -- is the guy pulling all the strings here ... we're told he invested over $250,000 to pull this off, with six months of engineering needed to bring this idea to life.

The massive drink was poured Friday morning at Beacher's Madhouse ... but it's too big for revelers to consume. Instead, it's serving as a prop for photo ops.

Fat Tuesday will be serving smaller versions of the world's largest daiquiri all night at its pre-Super Bowl party ... 18-oz yards filled with strawberry margarita made from Don Julio 1942 tequila.

The drinks are called the Royal Rita, in honor of Cardi.

Gillie Da Kid is pumped up for Super Bowl Sunday and is super confident his Philly Eagles are taking home the crown!!!

The Million Dollarz Worth of Game podcast host joined "TMZ Live" Friday and explained the origins of the Eagles' dual fight songs ... Gillie serves pregame smack talk with funk band Cameo's classic track "Candy" (y'know, because the other teams are "sweet") -- and celebrates victory by blasting Too Short's smash "Blow The Whistle."

Gillie says the West Coast anthem hasn't gotten old yet ... 14 wins and counting for the Eagles this season!!!

The Puppy Bowl is getting closer to the NFL than ever before ... they both have big games Sunday, and now the pups are going through a Scouting Combine too.

Dan Schachner -- the 14-year Puppy Bowl "Rufferee" -- joined us on "TMZ Live" and told us about the big new thing this year for Puppy Bowl XXI.

The Puppy Bowl Kickoff special now features the Puppy Combine, showcasing 10 little pooches showing off their football skills in a series of super cute challenges.

Eli Manning's being a great sport about his Hall of Fame snub ... TMZ Sports just caught up with him out on Bourbon Street, and it's clear as day he's not sweating the slightest bit.

Check out our chat with the New York legend down in New Orleans on Friday ... while there's a large sector of the football world up in arms over him not getting the official call to Canton on Thursday, he's very obviously not bothered.

The 44-year-old former signal-caller was in amazing spirits -- and even cracked a joke about the situation!!

Louisiana authorities have made an arrest in connection with the death of Telemundo reporter Adan Manzano ... whose body was found in his hotel room after he went to New Orleans to cover Super Bowl LIX.

Danette Colbert was arrested Friday after allegedly using Manzano's credit cards at several stores in the area following his death ... according to the Kenner Police Department. Colbert has reportedly been charged with fraud and theft-related offenses, as the investigation continues.

Police say security video from the hotel where Manzano was staying shows Colbert with the journalist Wednesday morning ... and later leaving his hotel room solo. He was later found dead in the room.

Jonathan Ogden thinks Lamar Jackson got robbed of the NFL's MVP award on Thursday night ... and he tells TMZ Sports he's convinced the QB lost it because voters simply felt bad for Josh Allen.

The Ravens legend held nothing back during our conversation down in New Orleans ... just minutes after Allen beat out Jackson for the hardware at NFL Honors.

Ogden was adamant Jackson's numbers crushed Allen's in every way -- and he's sure a bias against the Baltimore signal-caller -- who's won two MVPs in the past -- played a role in Josh ultimately walking away with the trophy.

Turns out Jon Jones' next bout isn't against Alex Pereira OR Tom Aspinall ... the UFC heavyweight champ is picking a fight against a far more powerful entity -- the American healthcare system!

TMZ Sports has an early look at a Super Bowl commercial starring Bones -- slated to run during Sunday's Chiefs vs. Eagles game -- where he takes aim at the industry.

"Thanks for joining me today. This next fight for me is a personal one, but it's not just for me. It's for every American who's ever been bullied, robbed, or deceived. It's arguably the most important fight of my career. My next opponent will be the American healthcare system," Jones says in the commercial.

Myles Garrett clearly isn't ready to cross any teams off his trade destination list -- not even some of his AFC North rivals -- 'cause he just revealed to TMZ Sports he wouldn't mind continuing his career in a cold-weather city.

The six-time Pro Bowler, of course, has battled snow throughout his eight-year stint in Cleveland ... and when we got him out after NFL Honors in New Orleans on Thursday night -- just days after he requested a trade from Cleveland -- he made it clear continuing that trend is just fine with him if he is ultimately dealt.

Garrett told us straight up, "I don't mind snow" -- before insisting the only criteria he has for his next team is a stacked roster.

Jake Paul isn't pulling punches after his fight talks with Canelo Alvarez torpedoed ... blasting the boxing superstar and calling him an "owned slave" for backing out of the blockbuster event.

El Gallo released a scathing post on his X account Friday morning ... hours after it was reported a Paul vs. Alvarez fight was close to being announced -- just for it to fall apart.

Paul claimed Alvarez "ducked" him and isn't behind the wheel of his own career ... nor does he care for "the pride of the Mexican people who support him on U.S. soil."

Jason Kelce can clearly take a joke -- even if it's about his controversial interaction with a fan at the Penn State game last year ... 'cause the future Hall of Famer laughed off a jab about his viral f-slur during a savage roast session.

The Philadelphia Eagles legend got on the hot seat during his appearance on Friday's episode of "Pardon My Take" ... when Barstool Sports employee Kate Mannion joined the show to unload some of her most brutal bars.

The segment covered pretty much everything -- from Taylor Swift to Mama Kelce to his recent overexposure in the media.

Ben Affleck scored some major dad points Thursday night ... not only did he snag himself and his kid some better seats than Kamala Harris for the Lakers game -- he also got Steph Curry to swing by for a meet-and-greet!

Ben and little Samuel Garner Affleck scored some courtside chairs for L.A.'s home tilt vs. the Golden State Warriors ... and the two seemed to have a blast as Curry and LeBron James duked it out on the floor.

The guys were seen cheering often ... with the young Affleck even animatedly celebrating a few 3-pointers in his James jersey.

Randy Moss made a surprise appearance on the big screen Thursday night during the NFL Honors show ... helping present the league's Comeback Player of the Year award -- while also thanking everyone for their support amid his cancer battle.

The legendary Minnesota Vikings receiver appeared virtually in front of the star-studded crowd down in NOLA, rocking the Team Moss gear he dropped following his cancer announcement.

"I want to send a special thank you to all of my doctors," he said. "My beautiful wife, my children, my family, my teammates and all the prayer warriors out there. We are 'Mossing' cancer and I can't wait to get back on television with all my guys."