The superstar defensive end has tasted joy and disappointment already after investing into the Turf Moor outfit
J.J. Watt is still new to soccer ownership, so you'll have to excuse him a bit. He's the competitive sort, after all, having proven himself as one of the most dominant forces American football has ever seen, and it's hard to tuck that side of himself away, even when watching the new sort of football that dominates his life.
You see, Watt is still very much learning about the Premier League and the culture that defines it. One year into his part-ownership of Burnley, Watt continues to receive a crash course in what was once, to him, the other football, but is now one of the biggest parts of his life.
He learned a valuable lesson this week, one that all who post about this game on social media have learned at one point or another. There are a lot of things you can get away with, but there's no running afoul of the Premier League's rights rules, not even if you're arguably the most dominant defensive force the NFL has ever seen.
Watt's recent misstep came after Burnley's controversial draw with Luton Town on Friday. Passion was high, his blood was running hot. That competitive side came out, and instead of an opposing quarterback, it was the Premier League referees on the other side.
That's the new side of Watt, the defensive end-turned-club owner. The passion remains the same, as does the competitiveness, but just one year into his new football adventure, Watt is still eager to find the success that made him a legend stateside.
Getty ImagesMeet J.J.
If you don't follow the NFL, it's difficult to properly explain just how good Watt was. In a sport dominated by supreme athletes and genetic freaks, Watt was the most dominant of them all.
One of the top defensive linemen of all time, Watt was named the Defensive Player of the Year three times in his first five seasons. He commanded double teams virtually every time he was on the field, and Watt would blast throw the giants in front of him, amassing sack after sack while solidifying icon status as a Houston Texan.
Watt was so good that the Texans found ways to use him on the other side of the ball. He caught three touchdowns during the 2014 season, as the Texans utilised Watt's 6'5, 288lb frame in goalline situations to overpower opponents.
Having solidified himself as an icon in Houston, Watt finished his career with two seasons in Arizona, amassing 12.5 sacks in his final season for the Cardinals before retiring on a high in 2022. He is likely to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, and given they retired at the same time, will likely enter NFL immortality alongside legendary quarterback Tom Brady in 2028.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesConnection to soccer
Despite all of his success in one type of football, Watt isn't the only athlete in his household. No, his wife, Kealia, had quite the career herself.
A longtime NWSL standout with three U.S. women's national team caps to her name, Kealia Watt, formerly Kealia Ohai, was a regular for the Houston Dash for years. It was in Houston where she met her future husband, as the two started to date in 2016 before marrying in 2020.
Watt was, of course, a passionate supporter of his wife with the Dash and then with Chicago Red Stars, where she finished her career in 2021. He also, like many Americans, chose himself a Premier League team, which, funnily enough, was not Burnley.
“Playing FIFA on video games was my first true interaction,” Watt told ’ 'Men in Blazers'. “So we were playing and I would pick Ivory Coast every time. No clue why, but I would pick Ivory Coast every time and obviously [Didier] Drogba was the legend.
“So I was like, ‘Alright, who does Drogba play for?’ And just started following Chelsea because Drogba was on Chelsea. All of a sudden they’re winning [the] Champions League and they’re winning the Premier League. I’m like this is unbelievable — this is the best team ever.”
Watt made the trip to Stamford Bridge to see Drogba play and immediately fell in love. What stuck out to him immediately was just how different the culture was from what he was used to in America, where teams regularly relocate or change on an owners' whim.
“That is the coolest part about the Premier League by far,” Watt said. “It is the neighborhoods, it is how they come together to create the songs and the banners and the flags, the away trips. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen, it’s hard for me to grasp.
“Because we say we love our teams and there’s plenty of people that do love their teams — face paint and everything. But it is a different level. Imagine if someone tried moving Everton from Liverpool to a different city. We over here do it all the time. We bop teams around city to city. That would never ever happen over there.”
GettyLink up with Burnley
The video announcing Watt's arrival at Burnley had all the references you would expect. Ted Lasso and Ryan Reynolds were both name-dropped, and how couldn't they be given their own places in the wild world of crossovers between American pop culture and the English soccer pyramid.
Watt joined that stable in 2023, when he and his wife bought a minority stake in Burnley. They unveiled their involvement in a video poking fun at Watt, labeling him as a bored retired guy eager for a new thrill. "I really need something to do," Watt said.
That something turned out to be Burnley, with the Watts touring and spending time in the local community before officially joining up in May of 2023. "We don't have 'buy an entire European football club' kind of money. We're more along the lines of minority investment but massive emotional investment," J.J. added.
Watt's right; that investment has been a hugely emotonal one, as he has jumped all the way in to life as an owner.
A rollercoaster journey
Watt is no absentee owner. No, the ex-NFL star is now getting his competitive fix through Burnley, a club that has already taken him on quite a ride. Led by Vincent Kompany, the Clarets earned promotion back to the Premier League last season. And,since the start of this campaign, Watt has been all the way involved, from pouring pints for fans at a local pub to tackling pundit Jamie Carragher at Turf Moor.
“I have now done it three times," he said of his new favorite pub crawl. "I start at The Dyche and make my way down. The last stop I make before I walk to the stadium is Burnley Miners Club and the last thing I get before I go to the game is a Bene Bomb – which is Red Bull, Benedictine in a shot and drop it in just like a Jaeger Bomb. I always make my way down and go in there. Every crowd at each pub is a different type of crowd. I have now learned the different kind of Burnley supporters that frequent each pub. When I go in there, they have my little Bene Bomb ready for me. I take it and walk into the stadium with the rest of the supporters.”
Results, though, have been a bit harder to come by. The Clarets currently sit 19th in the Premier League, having earned just 12 points through 21 games. They're five points from safety, leaving themselves a lot of work to do if they wish to remain in the Premier League.
Despite that, during his weekly appearances on Pat McAfee Show', Watt is regularly optimistic about Burnley's chances, and has asked supporters on both sides of the pond to stick with the team.
"There's no doubt about it, it's been a rocky start to this campaign," he said in November. "It has not gone the way we wanted it to go. But you don't get involved in something like this for the […] good times, you're also there for the sh*tty times, and you're also there for when you've got to work through some stuff.
"We're very early into a brand new Premier League season, so I'm optimistic about where we're going. Vincent is a very smart manager, we've got a system that takes a little time to learn, and we've got new guys learning that system. I remain optimistic, the hat stays on the head, and we go again!"
