Super Bowl 60 takes place tonight at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, with the New England Patriots facing the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL’s championship game. The Super Bowl was created following the 1966 merger of the American Football League and the National Football League and has since become the most-watched sporting event in the US. Beyond football, the game has grown into a major cultural and commercial moment. Thirty-second advertising slots now sell for millions, and the halftime show ranks among the year’s most-watched music performances.
How do you spy in a war that hasn’t officially begun?
In Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, ethnic tensions were rising, violence loomed, and the US publicly stuck to a policy of non-intervention. Privately, however, Washington needed eyes on the ground. That task fell to H.K. Roy, a CIA operations officer sent to Belgrade to monitor a country sliding from Cold War uncertainty into open conflict.
Operating in a denied area, H.K. relied on classic tradecraft: long surveillance detection routes, late-night meetings, and brief exchanges designed to leave no trace. In cemeteries, parking garages, and deserted streets, he met a Yugoslav security officer spying for the Americans, collecting sports bags full of top-secret documents that revealed what the government was planning as the Balkans edged toward war.
As Yugoslavia fractured, H.K.’s role shifted. He moved from clandestine intelligence work in Belgrade to a more exposed position in Croatia, reporting from a conflict zone as artillery fire and air raids became part of daily life. Part spy, part war correspondent, he navigated collapsing institutions, propaganda, and the constant risk that one mistake could expose his sources or himself.
Join H.K. Roy in this week’s podcast selection, ‘Balkan Betrayals: The Correspondent’, as he goes behind enemy lines.
Take on immersive games and challenges at SPYGAMES! Test your team's skills and strategy, compete to climb the leaderboards, and recharge with food and drink in your own private space hosted by a dedicated staff member.
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Each February, a small town in western Pennsylvania pauses to watch a familiar ritual unfold. Just after sunrise, Punxsutawney Phil is lifted from his burrow to deliver a seasonal verdict: early spring, or six more weeks of winter. The decision comes courtesy of two scrolls and one key question. Does he see his shadow?
On Monday, February 2, Phil did indeed spot it, signaling six more weeks of winter ahead. The ceremony, complete with tuxedos and top hats, dates back to 1886, when a local newspaper editor helped formalize what had already been a regional tradition. Its deeper roots stretch back further to Eastern Europe, where communities marked the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. The date also overlaps with Candlemas, a Christian holiday long associated with weather lore. By most counts, Phil gets it right roughly 35% of the time, though supporters argue that it depends entirely on how you score the rules.
Articles
Gen Z Spies
Are gamers becoming an unexpected weak spot in modern espionage?
Online gaming worlds were once dismissed as escapism. But over the past few years, they’ve started appearing in intelligence briefings for very different reasons. From Discord servers to niche military game forums, sensitive information has surfaced not through ideology or money, but ego, boredom, and the pull of online communities.
A striking case involved US Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira, whom prosecutors say shared hundreds of classified documents with people he met online, not spies or journalists, but gamers. He wasn’t alone. Since 2021, classified military details have appeared multiple times on forums linked to the game War Thunder, including specifications for tanks and ammunition, reportedly posted to win arguments rather than advance a cause.
That pattern has raised uncomfortable questions inside the intelligence world. Traditional spycraft relies on motives summed up as MICE: money, ideology, compromise, and ego. Some experts now argue online belonging deserves its own category. Tight-knit digital communities can create trust, pressure, and incentives that existing counterintelligence systems struggle to spot.
At the same time, gaming platforms cut both ways. They may enable leaks, but they also offer intelligence agencies new terrain for identifying risks, recruiting sources, and monitoring behavior without meeting face to face. Discover more in this SPYSCAPE article.
Give your party guests an unforgettable experience designed to engage, entertain, and inspire. Our dedicated staff will be on hand to help, and you'll even get your own private space to celebrate.
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The 2026 Winter Olympics opened Friday night in Milan, marking Italy’s third time hosting the Winter Games. The opening ceremony took place at San Siro Stadium, with 2,916 athletes from 92 national Olympic committees set to compete, including 232 from the United States. Competition runs through February 22 and features 16 sports, with athletes competing for 116 gold medals.
Unlike past editions, these Games stretch across nearly 8,500 square miles of northern Italy, pairing Milan’s urban venues with Alpine sites in Cortina d’Ampezzo. The closing ceremony moves east to Verona, with the Paralympics following from March 6–15. Built around sustainability, nearly 90% of venues are reused or temporary.
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