Tag: Kealia Watt

JJ and Kealia Watt will both play for Burnley in TST 2024

Burnley’s high-profile co-owners are ready to test themselves on the field.

Burnley’s high-profile co-owners are ready to test themselves on the field.

JJ and Kealia Watt will both play for Burnley in the 2024 edition of The Soccer Tournament (TST), a 7v7 event with a $1 million winner-take-all prize.

Burnley will enter a team in both the men’s and women’s division of the tournament, with the NFL legend and the ex-NWSL star set to captain their respective sides.

“It’s really exciting for both Kealia and I to headline Burnley FC’s men’s and women’s teams at TST,” JJ Watt said in a statement. “We’ve called some friends and are planning on bringing the best teams we can to compete. We are both highly competitive individuals, so we’ll be giving it our all in claret and blue!”

The couple announced last May that they had become investors in Burnley.

Kealia Watt added: “We’re delighted to announce our involvement in TST. Having the opportunity to represent Burnley on the pitch and compete against clubs from around the globe will be incredibly special.

“I’m also looking forward to making history with the inaugural women’s Tournament. This is an important addition and I’m pleased to see TST’s commitment to an equal prize for the winning men’s and women’s teams. I’m looking forward to playing in the Burnley shirt and reuniting with some of my former teammates.”

This year’s TST will feature an eight-team women’s tournament and a 48-team men’s tournament, with the winner of each competition taking home $1 million.

Other notable figures confirmed to be involved in this year’s tournament include Sergio Agüero, Nani, Mario Balotelli, Ali Krieger, Heather O’Reilly and more.

TST will be held at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC from June 5-10, with ESPN broadcasting select matches.

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JJ Watt says Burnley investment came after talking Wrexham with Ryan Reynolds

If you’re buying into a UK soccer club, might as well call an expert

It sounds like the audience for “Welcome to Wrexham” includes J.J. and Kealia Watt.

Speaking just two days after the couple announced their investment in Championship-winning Burnley, J.J. Watt said that their considerations over whether to buy into English soccer included a chat with the most famous club owner in North America, Ryan Reynolds.

“I did talk to Ryan. I wanted to get his perspective, find out what his experience has been,” Watt said on Wednesday during an appearance on the ESPN show Get Up. “When you look at the parade they’ve just had, the turnout, and the ability to take eyeballs from around the globe and put them on Wrexham.”

Reynolds and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” actor Rob McElhenney certainly have some expertise to bring to the table for new club owners. Wrexham recently clinched the National League championship, and promotion to League Two, while drawing unprecedented attention in the U.S. for a non-Premier League team.

“I have been a football fan for a long time,” said Watt on where his interest in Burnley began, before noting that being married to an eight-year NWSL veteran with three U.S. women’s national team caps is also a big factor. “Obviously, my wife is a professional soccer player, and I really wanted to get into ownership.”

Burnley ‘slightly different’ from Wrexham

Watt may be new to soccer ownership, but he seems to know full well that Wrexham and Burnley are not in the same situation. Reynolds and McElhenney purchased Wrexham outright in 2021, while the Watts are minority investors with Burnley. ALK Capital, a U.S.-based investment firm, owns the bulk of shares in the Clarets.

Burnley is also three tiers higher than Wrexham, and spent just one season in the Championship after six straight Premier League campaigns.

“Obviously, it’s a slightly different situation from a club perspective, but you want to hear from someone doing it right,” acknowledged Watt before pivoting to a possible similarity between the clubs.

“That’s what Kealia and I want to do, take eyeballs from all around the world and put them on Burnley because we think that town, that story, it’s been around since 1882,” said Watt. “We want people to get to know about Burnley, and there are so many Americans that are getting into the Premier League right now and not knowing which club to support. We want them to support Burnley.”

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NWSL star Kealia Watt and husband J.J. Watt invest in Premier League squad Burnley

The superstar couple will be branching out overseas into a new kind of football.

Move over, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, there’s a new power couple in international football. Former NFL superstar J.J. Watt and wife Kealia announced via social media on Monday, May 1, that they are investing in Burnley Football Club.

Having just secured promotion on April 7 with a win over Middlesbrough, Burnley will play in the Premier League next season.

Kealia Watt is a soccer superstar herself, having played for North Carolina in college — where she won an NCAA title in 2012 — and NWSL clubs the Houston Dash and Chicago Red Stars. Watt spent 12 years in the NFL, winning NFL Defensive Player of the Year three times.

MORE: Paul Rudd had the absolute best time watching Wrexham get promoted

Now, they can add club investors to their resume. The announcement video, which referred to J.J. Watt as “Retired Guy” and made some topical Ryan Reynolds references. Check it out:

“In the US, I’ve seen the NWSL grow into something really incredible, and we’d love to be a part of growing the women’s team here and be a part of their journey,” Kealia Watt said in the press release regarding helping the women’s club at Burnley continue to grow.

J.J. is equally as excited, saying, “When you invest in a club that’s been around since 1882, you must have great respect for its history and tradition. We understand that not only are we investing in the squad and manager, we’re investing in the town and its people. We take that responsibility very seriously and intend to work hard in earning their trust and support.”

Will we get a Welcome to Wrexham-esque documentary as Watt explores retirement with a new type of football? Let’s hope so.

JJ and Kealia Watt become investors in Burnley FC

The couple will join the ownership group of the soon-to-be Premier League club

Burnley FC have announced that JJ Watt and his wife Kealia Watt have become investors in the soon-to-be Premier League club.

JJ Watt retired after the 2022 NFL season, following a career in which he became one of the league’s greatest ever defensive players.

Kealia Watt, meanwhile, has not played since the 2021 NWSL season after an eight-year pro career that saw her earn three caps with the U.S. women’s national team. She gave birth to the couple’s first child, Koa James Watt in October 2022.

“When you invest in a club that’s been around since 1882, you must have great respect for its history and tradition,” JJ Watt said in a club release. “We understand that not only are we investing in the squad and manager, we’re investing in the town and its people. We take that responsibility very seriously and intend to work hard in earning their trust and support.”

Under the leadership of first-year manager Vincent Kompany, Burnley were crowned champions of the Championship in 2022-23, and will return to the Premier League next season.

The club’s women’s team plays in the third-tier Women’s National League North, and recently played its first ever game at Turf Moor.

“In the U.S. I’ve seen the NWSL grow into something really incredible, and we’d love to be a part of growing the women’s team here and be a part of their journey,” Kealia Watt said.

Burnley chairman Alan Pace added: “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome JJ and Kealia into the Clarets family. This is a conversation that has been happening for some time and over the course of this season we’ve been hugely impressed by their passion and interest in both the club and the Burnley community. I am very much looking forward to working with them.”

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Chicago Red Stars forward Kealia Watt and her husband, a football player, are expecting

The pair are due to welcome their first child in October

Chicago Red Stars forward Kealia Watt has announced that she and her husband, Arizona Cardinals star J.J. Watt, are expecting their first child.

The couple made the announcement on social media, saying that the baby is due in October.

“Could not be more excited,” J.J. Watt said in his post, while Kealia Watt simply captioned her post with the due date.

The couple has been together since 2016 and got married in February 2020.

Kealia Watt (formerly Ohai) was selected as the second overall pick in the 2014 NWSL College Draft by the Houston Dash. In 2020, she was traded to the Red Stars. She has been capped three times by the U.S. women’s national team, with all three coming in 2016.

J.J. Watt, meanwhile, is considered one of the greatest players in Houston Texans history, winning Defensive Player of the Year awards in 2012, 2014 and 2015. He is currently getting ready for his second season with the Cardinals.

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J.J. Watt shared a 7-year-old Twitter moment he had with Kealia Ohai Watt, and it’s so sweet

This is the cutest.

Sometimes, Twitter is a good thing and creates delightful, heartwarming interactions. The latest example of that is brought to you by J.J. Watt and Kealia Ohai Watt, but it’s a throwback moment from seven years ago.

Back in 2014 during the National Women’s Soccer League draft, the Houston Dash drafted Kealia out of UNC with the No. 2 overall pick. She was the then-expansion team’s first draft pick, and NFL tight end J.J. — who was playing for the Houston Texans at the time — tweeted at her, welcoming her to the city.

Most people likely forgot about this simple interaction from so many years ago, and that appears to be true for J.J.

In 2019, J.J. and Kealia got engaged, and they were married in February of 2020. As a major sports power couple, their quick 7-year-old Twitter moment is so sweet and wholesome, as one Twitter user pointed out in the replies, which caught the tight end’s attention.

In 2014, J.J. tweeted:

“Welcome to Houston @KealiaOhai! Great start for the new Dash franchise. #TeamHouston”

And Kealia responded:

@JJWatt thanks JJ! Excited to play in one of the best cities in the world

Of course, neither of them are in Houston anymore with J.J. now with the Arizona Cardinals, while Kealia plays for the Chicago Red Stars. But it’s so sweet to see this brief interaction and knowing how their story ends.

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J.J. Watt hilariously trolled his wife, Kealia, after Wisconsin beat UNC in the Men’s NCAA Tournament

A true household divided.

Nothing quite divides a household like a competition between alma maters. We saw that throughout the day on Friday through the Watt household.

JJ Watt went to Wisconsin. His wife, Kealia, went to North Carolina. The two teams played in the Men’s NCAA Tournament on Friday.

So, of course, that means Friday was probably a rough day in the Watt household. If their tweets at each other were any indication, this was certainly a house divided.

They tried to solve it through their two dogs. They dressed them both up with one wearing a Wisconsin jersey and the other wearing a UNC jersey.

They had them play fetch and whichever one came back with the ball was the one who would win the game.

Then the game started and things weren’t looking the greatest for Kealia Watt. UNC was down at the half and she was pretty worried.

JJ Watt through on a little troll as a cherry on top by tweeting her Michael Jordan’s infamous “the ceiling is the roof” line.

UNC ended up getting blown out 85-62. It wasn’t at all. BUT STILL. Kealia got the last laugh here.

Now, that’s the proper way to respond to a loss. You love to see it.

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