May 21 (UPI) – Jim Irsay, the main owner of the Indianapolis colts since the death of his father in 1997, died on Wednesday. He was 65 years old.
During his 38-year-old mandate, the Colts won the Super Bowl XLI on February 4, 2007 in Miami Gardens, Florida, defeating the Chicago Bears 29-17. The colts lost against the saints of New Orleans in the Super Bowl XLIV on February 7, 2010, also at the Miami Dolphins Home Stadium.
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“We are devastated to announce that our beloved owner and CEO, Jim Irsay, died peacefully in his sleep this afternoon,” said the chief of the colts, Pete Ward Declaration published by the team. “Jim’s dedication and passion for Indianapolis colts in addition to his generosity, his commitment to the community, and above all, his love for his family was not prohibited.”
When his father moved the franchise to Indianapolis in Baltimore in 1984, he became managing director at 24 years old.
“The generosity of Jim can be felt everywhere on Indianapolis, the state of Indiana and the country,” said Ward. “He has made philanthropy a daily business.”
Jim Irsay speaks during a private event by the Jim Irsay Collection, a renowned assembly of historical artefacts and emblematic of rock music, American history and pop culture, in Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan Center on June 2, 2022 in New York. Folder photo by John Angello / Upi
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement: “We were deeply saddened to learn the death of Jim Irsay today”, ” Said Goodell. “He spent his life and his career in the National Football League. Starting in adolescence as a colt ballboy, he learned each post in the organization before assuming the leadership of the colts about 30 years ago. Jim’s Colts won the Super Bowl, welcomed another and built the Lucas Oil Stadium.
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“He led with integrity, passion and care for players, coaches and colt staff, and his courageous work to support mental health will be a lasting heritage. Apart from football, he was a talented musician and built an extraordinary collection of historical and musical artefacts that he shared with people across the country.”
Irsay-Gordon, his eldest daughter, was the most involved in team operations and took the place of his father during his suspension of the NFL in 2014 after his CFA arrest. He also leaves to mourn the girls Casey Foyt and Kalen Jackson; His ex-wife and the mother of her daughters, Meg Coyle; and 10 grandchildren.
He was hospitalized after the first stakeholders found him indifferent in his room on the morning of December 8, 2023. The police described him as alleged overdose.
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On January 9, 2024, the colts declared in a statement that he was processed for a “serious respiratory disease”.
Irsay did not attend the annual NFL meeting in Palm Beach, Florida, in March and was not considered as present at the NFL draft last month.
He became the main owner at 37 after the death of his father, Bob. He became the youngest owner at the time.
Irsay was a member of the NFL finance committee and chaired the legislative committee.
Before being the best manager of the colts, he was one of the four executives appointed by the NFL commissioner, Pete Rozelle, in the 1980s to design what has become the wage ceiling of the League.
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Peyton Manning was the quarter of the Indianapolis colts in the two appearances of the Super Bowl.
Two years after losing against the saints in the Super Bowl, Irwin put Manning, the first overall choice of the 1998 recovery which is considered the greatest player in the history of the team. Manning was signed by Denver Broncos and led this franchise to a Super Bowl championship in 2016 and retired.
“My heart is broken to hear about the death of Jim Irsay,” said Manning in a press release Posted on Instagram. “He was an incredibly generous and passionate owner and I would always be indebted to have given me my beginning in the NFL. His love for the colts and the city of Indy was unequaled. His impact on the players who played for him will not be forgotten. Jim, rest in peace, my friend, # 18.”
In 1953, the Colts franchise was created in Baltimore and Robert “Bob” Irsay took over in 1972. They joined two other NFL teams, the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers, to join those of the American Football League to form the American fusion of the football conference in 1970.
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With an eminent domain threat from the city of Baltimore, the franchise moved to Indianapolis in the middle of the night on March 29, 1984, with Mayflower moving trucks. Indianapolis actively sought a team from the NFL because the city had built a dome -shaped stadium, originally called Hoosier Dome, then appointed RCA Dome. Since 2008, the Maison des Colts has been the largest oil stadium in Lucas.
Baltimore found an NFL team with the relocation of Cleveland’s browns and became the Ravens of Baltimore in 1996.
Like his father, Jim Irsay fought against alcoholism.
“These 12 stages have literally saved hundreds of thousands or millions of lives,” said Irsay ESPN last year. “My grandfather died in 1927, eight years before the AA foundation. And there was no hope for him. They would stick people in the Sanitarums at the time.
“Because of these 12 stages, I was able to fill the generation dam and say:” Stop! No more! “These families will not be separated and destroyed by all the conflicts that continue.”
