J.J. Watt. Alex Gould/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

J.J. Watt enjoys pub crawl for Burnley 'research'

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 5/9/23

Retired NFL superstar J.J. Watt is doing well to embrace life as a minority investor in to-be Premier League club Burnley FC.

As mentioned by ESPN, Watt spoke with the "BBC Breakfast" program on Tuesday about the unique way he chose to learn more about Burnley's history, traditions and supporters this spring.

"I did a pub crawl yesterday on my way to the stadium, so I started at the Royal Dyche, worked my way down to Vintage Clarets and all my way up to Turf Moor," Watt explained. "Just getting to know the supporters, I want to earn their trust by showing them how much we care and how passionate we are. It's research. I'm doing research and lots of pints of Guinness along the way. But it was a lot of fun and really good to get to know them on a personal level, and hopefully, they get to know us as well."

'I did a pub crawl yesterday on my way to the stadium... it's research'

NFL star JJ Watt has spoken to #BBCBreakfast about why he's invested in newly promoted Burnley as they prepare to return to the Premier Leaguehttps://t.co/x7BDVArM9h pic.twitter.com/KXxXFQ9HOy
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) May 9, 2023

Watt, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, confirmed this past December he was retiring from playing following the season. He and his wife, former United States women's national team midfielder Kealia Watt, announced on May 1 they were joining Burnley as minority owners.

The Watt family picked an excellent time to become officially associated with Burnley, as the club secured promotion to the English Premier League for the 2023-24 season by claiming the Championship title. The future Pro Football Hall of Famer attended Burnley's final game of the campaign, a 3-0 home win over Cardiff City.

"Promotion and relegation, the highs and lows, the consequences are incredible, so we have been looking for a club for a long time," Watt said about an aspect of European football that's absent from professional sports competitions in North America. "We knew that once we found the right opportunity we were going to go all-in, so we took our time. Burnley checked every single box."

Watt joked in his May 1 video announcement he didn't have "buy an entire European football club kind of money" to follow in the footsteps of Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who purchased Wrexham AFC during the COVID-19 pandemic and recently celebrated that club's return to the fourth tier of English football for the first time in 15 years. Perhaps Wrexham's achievements could give Watt something to aim for regarding his involvement with Burnley.

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