'It's research': J.J. Watt does pub crawl to connect with Burnley fans

J.J. Watt is a man of the people and recently participated in a pub crawl to connect with fans of Burnley FC, the Premier League-bound team he invested in earlier this month.

"Just getting to know the supporters. I just want to earn their trust by showing them how much we care and how passionate we are," he said while wearing a maroon Clarets cap during an appearance on BBC Breakfast on Tuesday.

He attended the club's English League Championship game on Monday, where Burnley beat Cardiff City 3-0. He said that prior to the home match at Turf Moor, he traveled with supporters from The Royal Dyche (named after former manager Sean Dyche) to the Vintage Claret and on to the stadium.

"It's research, I'm doing research," he laughed with the show's hosts. "Lots of pints of Guinness along the way. But it was a lot of fun and it was really good to get to know them on a personal level and hopefully they get to know us as well."

The former Pro Bowl defensive end, who retired at the end of the 2022 season, also appeared in a video posted on Burnley's Twitter account encouraging fans to attend Tuesday's celebration parade.

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"If you're like me, you're waking up a little groggy this morning due to last night's celebrations," he said. "But all that means is you did it right, you did it proper. So get yourself some rest today and get yourself out there for the parade this afternoon. Celebrate this club, celebrate this manager, celebrate these players. It's a special, special time in Burnley. Enjoy every single second of it and then we go again next year."

Manager Vincent Kompany will take the Clarets back to the Premier League next season after only a year away from the top tier of English football. His Burnley team finished the 2022-2023 campaign with 101 points after the championship win. Part of his quick turnaround was he revamped the roster, including initiating a loan with Southampton to bring in this year's leading scorer, Nathan Tella.

Watt and his wife, former NWSL and USWNT midfielder Kealia Watt, announced they purchased a stake in the team earlier this month when it was revealed Burnley would be promoted to the Premier League. Watt has cited Ryan Reynolds' ownership of Wrexham FC as inspiration for his own involvement. He said that despite all the fun, he takes his role with the club seriously.

"I've learned that the history, the tradition, the supporters, it's all about respecting and honoring that," he said in the interview with BBC. "You never want to come in and try and do something that's not true to who the club is and who the people of Burnley are. And I think that's the thing that we're most trying to do is show people what real Burnley's about."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: J.J. Watt connects with Burnley FC soccer fans during pub crawl