Stand aside, Wrexham! Hollywood could now head to Burnley with Kealia and JJ Watt

Move over Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, there’s a new star duo making waves in English football.

Sporting power couple JJ and Kealia Watt confirmed their investment in Burnley at the start of the month, ahead of the club’s return to the Premier League, and are ready to follow in the Hollywood actors’ footsteps by growing the fanbase in the United States and beyond.

Burnley and Wrexham may be three divisions apart, but when it comes to matters away from the football pitch, there are striking similarities. Both clubs reside in working class towns with tradition and community at its heart. Glamorous? Not really. But that is not why the Watts are here.

‘People did tell us before “it’s a great place but it’s a little rough around the edges”,’ Kealia tells Mail Sport.

‘We got here and we thought “we love this!” We couldn’t believe how beautiful it was.

Kealia Watt has grand plans for Burnley after investing into the English soccer team 

Kealia and her husband, the retired NFL hero JJ, were inspired by the story of Wrexham

JJ Watt retired earlier this year – here, they are pictured together at an Arizona Cardinals game

‘We had spoken to Alan Pace (Burnley’s chairman) many times and we loved his vision. He’s so smart and he’s done so well with the club. 

‘We also are huge Vincent Kompany fans and we got to come here, meet so many amazing people that we just fell in love with it. We got to talk to Vincent for quite a while and just listening to his vision and his outlook on life and football, it was a perfect fit for us.’

It is Kealia who has the soccer background having made three senior appearances for the US national team as well as enjoying an 11-year playing career in the National Women’s Soccer League before taking a break after giving birth to son Koa in October.

Husband JJ is a retired NFL legend and future Hall of Famer but has always had a keen interest in English football. The couple spoke to Reynolds and McElhenney before committing to their investment and the aim is to replicate the Hollywood duo’s success at growing an American audience as well as integrating with the community.

‘That has been JJ’s vision from the beginning of this,’ Kealia says. ‘With this situation, it’s a little easier because Burnley are going up into the Premier League. There are a lot of Premier League fans in America, I think it’s growing.

‘But not many people know about Burnley or really know the story and know what’s going on here. When we first started this we were talking about how Burnley used to be known as this rough, tough, team that was combative and would fight for 90 minutes.

‘What Vincent [Kompany] has done in a short amount of time is unbelievable.’

An important part of Kealia’s role will also be helping to grow the women’s team, who became fully integrated with the men’s set-up in 2021, and there are ambitious plans to reach the Women’s Super League.

The couple’s exciting move to bring investment to Burnley was revealed last month

Kealia – a former USA international – has plans to help the Burnley’s women’s team grow 

Here, Kealia is pictured alongside Lola Ogunbote, the Burnley general manager

‘Alan really wants to invest in the women’s team. I think the biggest thing is just getting them promoted and I know it’s harder said than done. It has to be a slow growth.

‘In America we’ve seen two times now where a bunch of money was put in and just thrown together and it failed. You really have to build it slowly and recruit the talent and then get them paid and paid enough.’

The women’s team, who are two divisions below the WSL, recently played their first game at Turf Moor and a lucrative partnership with TikTok has seen all of their home fixtures streamed live, with 1 million unique views across the season.

General manager Lola Ogunbote explains: ‘In two years, the club has been really good with backing the plans and vision that I have to professionalize and provide an environment where the women feel part of the club and not a token gesture.

‘The mantra for Burnley is one club for all and the women’s team is very much under that banner too and my job is to make sure that continues.’

Watt is undecided about whether she will return to playing herself but could she be tempted to turn out for Burnley?

‘We actually talked about it the other day, JJ was like “just come play, come try out!” That would actually be really fun,’ the 31-year-old laughs.

‘I have a six-month old baby so I’ve been training and trying to get back but it’s been really hard.

‘I’ve torn my ACLs and rehabbed back from that and had injuries but it’s a whole different thing because you’re trying to workout and you have a baby now and that’s your number one focus and concern.

Kealia and Ogunbote already have a growing bond as they make big plans for the future 

The Wrexham success with Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney could now come to Burnley

JJ and Kealia with the English Championship trophy – Burnley now return to the Premier League

‘But it is very cool to see globally that women don’t have to retire when they have a baby if they don’t want to. I remember at the beginning of our league in the NWSL, if you had a baby you were done, you couldn’t play anymore.

‘There just wasn’t enough support and there wasn’t really a way to figure it out. Now we have over 14 women [in the NWSL] playing that have kids. It’s really cool to see that growth and people like Alex Morgan and so many players in our league have done an incredible job in advocating for our rights.’

Watt is hoping her experience in fighting for equality in the women’s game will be of value in progressing Burnley as a club.

‘I think it’s so important to have women involved that know how difficult it is to be in football. It really is a man’s world and we have to fight every day for equality and it’s getting better but it’s nowhere near where it needs to be.

‘At every club I’ve been at, even in America, the men have come first. So you have to have people that are willing to go to the owners, to the people in charge and say we deserve just as much as the men – you need people fighting for you.’