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Former professional football player JJ Watt is getting some major husband points after defending his wife, Kealia Ohai Watt, on social media. The couple, who wed in 2020 and share two sons, took their oldest to enjoy a soccer game being played between Utah team Real Salt Lake and English team Burnley FC.
Watt and his wife became minority owners of Burnley in 2023. But when RSL shared that the family was at the game, they only shouted out the former American footballer. It turns out that his wife, who is from Utah, is an accomplished soccer player in her own right, and he wanted them to give her the respect she demands.
The team had no idea what they were getting themselves into.
Welcome to the Riot, @JJWatt and fam 🤩 pic.twitter.com/gv1XtrJ5zl
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) July 16, 2026
The post, which was shared on X, shows a picture of Watt and his wife walking down the stadium tunnel with their son.
“Welcome to the Riot, @JJWatt and fam 🤩,” the caption reads.
Quickly, commenters tried to point out their mistake.
“@KealiaOhai the one who has won championships on that turf,” one person wrote.
Another commenter got in early and wrote, “Guys….you have 11 comments. It’s ok to repost and actually tag @KealiaOhai.”
“Maybe make sure the person who posts for the team has an actual working knowledge of the sport and who its stars are. This is embarrassing for the team not to acknowledge Kealia,” someone else wrote.
As one commenter pointed out, “so weird to not mention his former professional soccer player wife who’s from Utah.”
Watt quickly addressed their mistake.
The woman in the photo grew up literally down the road, won 4 Utah state championships (1 in this exact stadium), Gatorade Player of the Year twice, National Player of the Year, scored the fastest first goal in USWNT history…
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) July 16, 2026
Could probably be worth a mention, but idk. https://t.co/ZJem8Nt9vo
He quoted the original Real Salt Lake post, adding his own take on their slip.
“The woman in the photo grew up literally down the road, won 4 Utah state championships (1 in this exact stadium), Gatorade Player of the Year twice, National Player of the Year, scored the fastest first goal in USWNT history…Could probably be worth a mention, but idk,” he wrote.
People praised Watt for stepping up and celebrating his wife’s accomplishments.
“I love that you go hard for your wife. Don’t ever stop.”
“I love you giving kudos to your wife! Well done. As a Utahn we are proud of her. She is from my city and went to the same high school as my sons! We love and remember Kealia Mae Ohai!”
“Shoutout to JJ for not wanting it to be all about him. Much respect when there are TWO major athletes in the household! Respect 🫡.”
Prior to the RSL post, Watt had made a post on X with pictures of him, Ohai and their son Koa on the field.
“Showing Koa where mom won her 4th straight state championship,” he wrote, tagging his wife.
Real Salt Lake soon offered an apology.
We made an honest mistake yesterday and we are sincerely sorry for that.
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) July 16, 2026
When we welcomed the Watt family to America First Field, we should have recognized Kealia Watt for exactly who she is.
Kealia is a Utah native and one of the most decorated players to ever come out of this… https://t.co/6p70X3A2QB pic.twitter.com/cT2fNVv6v4
The team addressed their mistake, and released a lengthy apology on X highlighting all of Ohai’s accomplishments.
“We made an honest mistake yesterday and we are sincerely sorry for that,” the apology began. “When we welcomed the Watt family to America First Field, we should have recognized Kealia Watt for exactly who she is.”
“Kealia is a Utah native and one of the most decorated players to ever come out of this state. Kealia won four state championships with her club and four more in high school, and was a two-time Utah Gatorade Athlete of the Year. She was a U.S. youth national teamer at 13. At the U-20 level, she scored the game-winning goal in the World Cup final.”
It concluded with “She started four years at North Carolina, won a national title with the Tar Heels, then went No. 2 overall in the NWSL draft to the Houston Dash, and was the franchise’s first-ever college pick. She then became their captain with 114 appearances and 28 goals. Kealia finished her career with the Chicago Stars (then known as the Red Stars) and is now a soccer analyst for Amazon Prime Video.”
“@KealiaOhai, @JJWatt — we are deeply sorry. Thank you for all you do for the sport.”
Watt responded, writing “Respect and appreciate taking ownership of it. Best of luck the rest of your season.”
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