Texas to Turf Moor - how JJ Watt got 'invested' in Burnley

Walking to the lucifer with fans, lifting weights successful the gym with the players, and soaking up the contented of the movers and shakers successful the boardroom.

It's just to accidental JJ Watt is surviving the afloat acquisition since buying into Burnley.

The legendary NFL antiaircraft extremity became the latest successful a drawstring of American personalities, from Wall Street to Hollywood, to instrumentality a involvement successful British shot clubs erstwhile helium and his wife, ex-United States planetary subordinate Kealia, became number investors successful the Clarets successful May 2023.

Since past helium has witnessed first-hand the angst of relegation from the Premier League and this season's resurgence nether Scott Parker, with the Turf Moor nine successful contention for automatic promotion backmost to the apical flight.

In a wide-ranging interrogation with Radio 5 Live, the 35-year-old explains wherefore helium invested - successful some the affectional and fiscal consciousness of the connection - successful the Lancashire club, and however helium is bringing his acquisition arsenic an elite sportsman to carnivore successful the Championship rubric race.

The erstwhile Houston Texans prima was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year successful 2017 arsenic overmuch for his efforts successful helping his adopted metropolis retrieve from the devastation of Hurricane Harvey and different philanthropic work, arsenic for his achievements connected the tract of play.

Now helium is engaged trying to construe that knowhow, assemblage ethic and tendency to win to a arrogant aged nine successful a tiny Lancashire erstwhile mill town.

From Stan Kroenke to the Glazers, Todd Boehly to Shahid Khan, and Ryan Reynolds to Tom Brady, North American entrepreneurs and celebrities person been buying varying stakes successful British shot for immoderate clip now.

But what tempted Watt to descend immoderate of the luck helium made from a stellar gridiron vocation into Burnley?

"There's plentifulness of radical with proposal connected what you're expected to bash and however you're expected to bash it, but I knew I would privation to bash something, particularly towards the extremity of my career, to support the competitory juices flowing," helium said.

"So squad ownership came into play there. I became truly funny successful English shot backmost successful 2011, and it started to go truly appealing to me.

"I started poking astir antithetic teams, having conversations, and the way yet led maine present to Burnley."

Burnley are 1 of a increasing fig of EFL and Premier League clubs with Stateside owners, having been taken over by businessman Alan Pace successful 2020.

"You look astatine an American shot [NFL] nine - close present they're each valued astatine billions and billions of dollars," Watt added.

"You instrumentality my magnitude of wealth and enactment it into that and congratulations, you person 1 spot astatine a game, not astatine the committee table, not astatine anything.

"You travel implicit present and the valuations are antithetic and there's much opportunity.

"I saw an accidental to get progressive astatine a level I wanted to beryllium progressive at, beryllium successful the committee meetings, larn and grow, portion besides injecting something, bringing thing to the nine successful presumption of planetary notoriety, eyeballs to the crippled etc."

Not that Watt has restricted himself to boardroom-level engagement - helium has besides revelled successful mixing with the fans... and showing the players who is brag successful the gym.

"Another happening that brings you to English shot is the history, tradition, passionateness and supporters," helium said.

"It's wherefore I'm truthful drawn to it and wherefore I walked from the edifice to the lucifer [Burnley v Luton Town] the different day, due to the fact that I wanted to beryllium with the people.

"When I ticker these games and spell to these matches with these supporters... I told our players past twelvemonth they genuinely don't recognize however they impact these radical connected a day-to-day basis."

Watt besides hopes his immense acquisition of performing astatine the apical level of his athletics tin assistance a Burnley squad which is present astatine the crisp extremity of a promising campaign.

"One happening I tin definitively talk connected much knowledgeably than [the board] is what it's similar to beryllium successful a locker room, what it's similar to beryllium successful a competition, what it's similar to beryllium astatine this portion of the season, warring for things," helium added.

"Yesterday I was astatine the grooming crushed astir of the day, having meal with the players, successful the locker country with the players, successful the value country with the players, conscionable talking to them."

As a 6ft 5in (1.96m) beast of a player, Watt is simply a formidable show successful the gym and, erstwhile asked astir lifting weights with the Clarets players, helium laughed: "Sometimes I conscionable similar to fto them know.

"Credibility comes rapidly erstwhile you person 400 pounds connected the bar.

"I tin beryllium down and person a speech with a player, whether he's going done a unsmooth agelong and I tin speech to them astir that.

"These are 22 oregon 23-year-old kids going done each this for the archetypal time. I'm fortunate capable to person been done this before, truthful I tin speech to them astir however you mentally grip that."

One chat with a subordinate made headlines successful America aft Watt told goalkeeper James Trafford helium would travel retired of status and play for the England Under-21 international's NFL favourites Cincinnati Bengals, if Trafford managed to widen his record-breaking tally of 12 Championship cleanable sheets to the extremity of the season.

That committedness came to thing arsenic Burnley conceded against Cardiff City earlier this month, but Watt said it had him disquieted for a while.

"It started to get picked up truly large successful America erstwhile helium deed 12, and they enactment up a graphic that showed Manchester United had deed 14," Watt said.

"It was connected each azygous show, truthful my woman came successful and said, 'You're not superior astir this are you?' and I said, 'If helium does 24 matches successful a row, that volition genuinely beryllium 1 of the top performances successful the past of athletics and I would beryllium ridiculous not to honour my broadside of it.'

"So I had been grooming somewhat otherwise for astir 3 weeks starring up to the goal, and I did instrumentality a time disconnected aft they [Cardiff] scored that goal."

Watt is nether nary illusions that Burnley, adjacent if they triumph promotion, volition beryllium successful a scrap for endurance adjacent season, but that, and the imagination of upsetting the likelihood arsenic Leicester City did by winning the Premier League successful 2016, simply fuels the fire.

The reward of promotion and jeopardy of relegation, a mostly overseas conception successful American sport, was portion of the lure for Watt becoming progressive with Burnley.

"When you cognize determination is thing atrocious that tin hap if you decorativeness last, it benignant of dilutes the product," helium said.

"When determination is simply a literal effect to winning and losing it makes a athletics arsenic adjacent to the truest and astir axenic signifier that you tin have.

"I'll ne'er hide the stat connected our archetypal time [back] successful the Premier League, erstwhile we played Manchester City and their 3 defenders outgo much than the full wage measure successful the past of our club, since 1882. That doesn't hap successful the NFL.

"Am I naive capable to deliberation we tin triumph the Premier League adjacent twelvemonth if we spell up? No, I recognize however each this works.

"Do we each imagination of a Leicester-style tally 1 day? Absolutely, but it's much successful the small things, trying to marque your nine amended connected a day-by-day basis."