New York City FC has released a first look at the renderings for its plans to build a new 25,000-seat stadium complex in Queens, the first soccer-specific stadium in the city.

In addition to the $780 million stadium, the project plans are set to include 40,000 square feet of public open space, a school, a hotel and ground floor retail shops to the Willets Point neighborhood, according to the New York club.

Developers are also planning to deliver 2,500 units of “100% affordable housing,” according to the New York club.

“This proposal will provide affordable homes for thousands of families, catalyze economic activity that supports small business and create another great destination in Queens,” Thomas J. Grech, president and CEO of the Queens Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement.

NYCFC says it plans to have the stadium, which will be privately financed, ready for the 2027 MLS season.

Willets Point is also home to the New York Mets’ Citi Field and NYCFC’s new stadium will be across the road from the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, home of tennis’ US Open.

New York mayor Eric Adams announced the plans to build a new stadium back in November and, according to the Queens Daily Eagle, the replacing of 100,000 tons of contaminated earth with 80,000 tons of clean dirt has recently been completed at the project site.

“This continued investment in New York City will create a long-overdue home for our First Team, and create a new neighborhood for Queens,” Marty Edelman, vice chairman of NYCFC, said in a statement.

NYCFC was founded in 2013 and played its first MLS season in 2015, but has never had its own stadium.

Now in its ninth MLS season, NYCFC has primarily played its home matches at Yankee Stadium, but has also hosted fixtures at Citi Field, Red Bull Arena and even as far afield as BMO Stadium in California.

“The integration of the residential buildings with the open space and stadium is a true model for how neighborhoods should be built, and is a critical step for how this vision will come to life in a way that puts housing first, prioritizes the pedestrian experience and will be built with union labor,” New York City Council member Francisco Moya said in a statement.

“The welcoming ‘front door’ to the new Willets serves as a powerful symbol of investment in a corner for Queens that has languished for too long but stands to become a beacon for the borough and the City.”

Tom Brady, who announced February 1 he was “retiring for good” after 23 seasons in the NFL, has been invited to the New England Patriots’ home opener, team owner Robert Kraft said.

Of Brady’s record seven Super Bowl wins, six came with New England, where he spent 20 years.

“The NFL is over a century old, and 20% of those years of the NFL, the greatest player in the history of the game played right here in Foxboro, and I’m happy to tell you and your audience that I invited him back to come here and be with us at the opening game and let the fans in New England thank him for the great service he gave us for over 20 years,” Kraft said.

“It will be the beginning of many celebrations to honor Tom Brady and say thank you for what he did for us those 20 years playing for the New England Patriots.”

The full NFL schedule will be released Thursday night.

“Not only do I want it, our fans are clamoring for it,” Kraft said at the time. “To us, he is always has been and always will be a Patriot. We will do everything in our power to bring him back, have him sign off as a Patriot and find ways to honor him for many years to come.”

February was Brady’s second retirement announcement, with the first coming on the same date for the quarterback in 2022 before changing his mind and coming back for one more season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Brazilian authorities have launched a federal investigation into soccer match-fixing, the country’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security announced in a statement on Wednesday.

“The measure was taken this Wednesday after the disclosure that athletes from main division clubs of Brazilian soccer were suspected of collaborating with gangs that would act through sports betting,” the statement read.

This comes a day after the state of Goias accused 16 people of manipulating the results of 13 soccer matches in Brazil’s Serie A and Serie B, as well as the state championship in 2022 and 2023.

According to the Goias Public Prosecutor’s office, one player was given $100,000 (500.000,00 Brazilian Reais) for a red card with $10,000 (40.000 Brazilian Reais) paid to him before the game.

“Faced with evidence of manipulation of results in sports competitions, with interstate and even international repercussions, I am determining today that an inquiry be instituted at the Federal Police for the legally applicable investigations,” the country’s Justice Minister Flavio Dino tweeted.

As a result of the investigation, some Brazilian soccer clubs have reportedly suspended some of their players pre-emptively.

The Colorado Rapids, a Major League Soccer club in the United States, confirmed that one of their players is connected to the Brazilian match-fixing scandal.

“We are aware of the reports regarding a Colorado Rapids player in connection with unlawful sports gambling,” the club said without naming the player.

“We take matters of this nature seriously and seek at all times to protect the integrity of the game. The player has been removed from all team activities while MLS conducts an investigation into the matter.”

In addition to the Colorado Rapids player, MLS also said one former player was involved in “unlawful sports gambling,” in a statement released on Wednesday.

“The integrity of the game is critical to the league and MLS takes seriously these allegations and any contravention of the league’s integrity rule,” MLS said.

“The current player has been removed from team activities pending an investigation into this matter, which will begin promptly.”

Here’s a look at Mount St. Helens, the most active volcano in the Cascade Mountains in Washington.

Facts

Mount St. Helens is located in Washington, about 55 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon, and 95 miles south of Seattle.

It is administered by the National Forest Service, not the National Park Service.

Over the last 500 years, Mount St. Helens has had at least four major explosive eruptions and many minor eruptions.

Mount St. Helens was named by Commander George Vancouver for British diplomat Alleyne Fitzherbert, whose title was Baron St. Helens.

Timeline

1792-1794 – The mountain is named while Commander Vancouver is surveying the northern Pacific coast.

1835 – Is first recognized as a volcano.

1857-1980 – Is inactive.

May 18, 1980 – Erupts.

Fifty-seven people are killed. Damage caused by the blast costs $1.1 billion.

Hot ash causes forest fires. Snow melt from the top of the mountain causes floods.

Volcanic ash spreads across the Northwest. More than 900,000 tons of ash are cleaned up from areas around Washington.

1980-1986 – Many small eruptions occur.

September 2004 – Several days of unusual seismic activity lead seismologists to believe that an explosion resulting from steam buildup is likely to occur.

October 2004 – Several small steam and ash explosions occur.

March 8, 2005 – Releases a column of smoke and ash nearly six miles high, leaving a plume visible for more than 50 miles.

January 2008 – Eruptions that have occured continously since October 2004 cease.

July 2014 – Final preparations begin for what geophysicists call the “equivalent of a combined ultrasound and CAT scan” of the inside of the volcano. The joint project by scientists at Rice University, the University of Washington, the University of Texas at El Paso and others involves placing 3,500 seismic sensors around the volcano. The project will take four years and aims to improve volcanic monitoring and advance warning systems.

November 3, 2015 – Scientists investigating the interior of the volcano present the first results at the Geological Society of America convention, saying there is not only a magma chamber directly below Mount St. Helens, there are other chambers east of the mountain that appear to be connected, with magma flowing between them.

Spring 2016 – Over the course of eight weeks, more than 130 small earthquakes occur beneath the surface of Mount St. Helens.

October 2018 – Ranks No. 2 on the US Geological Survey’s report of the most threatening volcanoes in the United States. The volcano is deemed a “very high threat” based on hazards posed to people and infrastructure.

It was a late night joyride that thankfully ended without anyone getting seriously hurt.

Two brothers, ages 6 and 3, took their parents’ car for a spin late Wednesday night on the Malaysian island of Langkawi, where they were picked up by local police after losing control and crashing into a lamp post.

The apparent reason for the brothers’ late night joyride? They were heading to the shops to buy a new toy car.

Langkawi police chief Shariman Ashari said the car they were driving, a silver Toyota Vios, had attracted the attention of other drivers who gave chase because they assumed the driver had been “drunk.”

He said the boys had sneaked out of their home while their “mother was in the bathroom and father was asleep” and taken the vehicle. They had traveled about 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) before the crash, which damaged the car’s bonnet, Shariman added.

“The driver was a minor aged six, who was driving a passenger – his brother, aged three. The crash occurred when the car, traveling from Ulu Melaka towards Kampung Nyior Chabang, lost control and crashed into a lamppost near Kampung Titi Chanwang,” Shariman said.

A 95-second video clip that has gone viral on Facebook appears to show the boys sitting on the driver’s seat, wearing casual shirts and red pants.

They can be heard telling passersby that they want to go to a toy store to buy a model car. “Mama is at home and we are going to the store,” the elder boy says in Malay. “We want to buy a black car,” the younger one adds.

Police said the elder boy suffered a cut to his chin while his brother was not injured. They have not named either child.

They said the case is being investigated under Section 43 of the Road Transport Act 1987 for reckless driving.

Pakistan is teetering after former Prime Minister Imran Khan was dramatically arrested by paramilitary troops on corruption charges, sparking a deadly outpouring of anger against the powerful military that has put the country on edge.

Unrest has spread across multiple major cities, resulting in unprecedented scenes of defiant crowds breaking into military properties and setting the homes of army personnel ablaze, directly challenging a usually untouchable force that has long sat at the apex of power in Pakistan.

Since it won independence in 1947, Pakistan has struggled with political instability, regime changes and coups with the military having a historically decisive role in who stays in power.

The army has accused Khan and his supporters of crossing a red line, saying that military property and installations have been “systematically attacked” and that “anti-army slogans were raised.”

“Any further attack on the army, including all law enforcement agencies, military and state installations and properties, will be severely retaliated against,” the military said in a Wednesday statement, its first since Khan’s arrest.

“The full responsibility of which will be on the very group that wants to push Pakistan into civil war.”

Police said they have arrested six senior politicians from Khan’s party for “inciting arson and violent protests,” adding more arrests should be expected soon.

The crisis comes as the nation of 220 million people grapples with an acute economic crisis, as soaring inflation leaves people unable to afford food and fuel, heightening fears about the country’s stability in what is an election year for Pakistan.

Khan has consistently stated in interviews that attempts to arrest him are meant to ensure he is out of the running. The government has denied these claims.

Here’s what you need to know.

Why was Khan arrested?

Khan was arrested on May 9 by paramilitary troops in a sudden operation that saw officers smash their way into a courthouse in the capital Islamabad to detain him on multiple corruption charges.

In a pre-recorded statement released on YouTube by the PTI after his arrest, the former prime minister said he was “detained on incorrect charges” and told his supporters “the time has come for all of you to come and struggle for your rights.”

On Thursday, Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled Khan’s arrest was unlawful, overturning a lower court’s ruling on Tuesday that it was legal. The court ordered that Khan be released, according to officials in Khan’s political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

What is happening in Pakistan?

Khan’s arrest turbocharged what was already a tense showdown between the military and Khan’s supporters that had been simmering for months.

The largest protests took place in the cities of Lahore and Peshawar, both political strongholds for Khan, and saw crowds clash with security forces.

Hundreds of protesters stormed the headquarters of the national broadcaster Radio Pakistan in Peshawar, setting the building on fire.

Police said nearly 1,000 Khan supporters had been arrested in the country’s most populous Punjab province, according to Reuters.

Private schools were ordered shut nationwide, with certain countries, including the United States, issuing travel advisories. The government blocked mobile internet services in a bid to quell the chaos, disrupting access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Popular apps and digital payment systems have also been disrupted.

Authorities in three of the country’s four provinces have imposed an emergency order banning all gatherings. The military has been called into Islamabad and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to provide security assistance.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called Khan’s supporters “terrorists” and has told them to “behave or face punishment.”

Who is Imran Khan?

Arguably Pakistan’s best-known prime minister in recent decades, Khan has made a name for himself as a politician, philanthropist and sports superstar both at home and around the world.

Born in 1952 in the city of Lahore, he received a prestigious education, rounded off with a degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University. He went on to become one of the best cricket players of his generation, ushering the Pakistan team to World Cup victory in 1992.

Riled by the constant state of corruption in a country historically led by powerful dynasties, his eyes were set on politics, and he founded his own political party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), in 1996.

The party mostly languished in the political wilderness until 2013, with a crop of new voters attracted by Khan’s promise to put an end to corruption and economic troubles. The PTI roared ahead in that year’s general election – though they were unable to win a majority.

In 2018, backed by the military, Khan was voted prime minister, promising a “new Pakistan,” vowing to eradicate poverty and corruption.

His unique brand of Islamic populism won him support from a young population in a country where anti-American sentiment and anti-establishment feelings are common.

But his relationship with the generals soured and things took a turn last year when Khan was removed from power in a vote of no confidence over claims of economic mismanagement.

The ouster riled his supporters, sparking mass protests, as Khan increasingly spoke out publicly against the military’s role in politics.

Last November, Khan survived a shooting at a political rally, in what his party called an assassination attempt.

Acting on the corruption charges, police and paramilitary troops had attempted to arrest Khan multiple times in recent months – with one operation this March ending in chaos as his supporters challenged authorities outside his home.

And the political upheaval appears to have only bolstered Khan’s popularity. Last year, his PTI party won local elections in the country’s most populous Punjab province, seen as a litmus test for national elections.

Why have protesters targeted the military?

Since Khan’s ouster, tens of thousands of his supporters have taken to the streets in key cities across Pakistan to protest, chanting slogans against Pakistan’s military.

Regarded as a formidable force in the country, the military has intervened in Pakistan’s politics multiple times in history, at times running the country directly.

And while political leaders have sometimes challenged its dominance in the past, analysts say the current situation is different because of who Khan’s supporters are.

It is “unique” that Khan has “garnered significant public support from the urban middle class, a group that has not traditionally been involved in challenging the military’s role in politics,” said Syed Baqir Sajjad, a Pakistan Fellow at the Wilson Center in Washington.

“This has put increased pressure on the military establishment, which is feeling the heat more this time,” he said.

Khan has repeatedly accused the military of conspiring with Sharif to remove him from office, even calling out a senior official by name and accusing him of being behind the shooting that injured him in November.

Going on Khan’s claims, his supporters have targeted their rage toward the military, fervently taking to social media to put out messages against the establishment.

“The intensity and consistency of Imran Khan’s attacks on the military, especially after being ousted from office last year, are unprecedented,” said Sajjad.

“It remains to be seen how this conflict will play out in the long term, but it is clear that the relationship between the military and civilian government in Pakistan has always been a fragile one, with power struggles frequently erupting into open conflict.”

What happens next?

The situation on the ground remains tense with Khan in custody and no clear off-ramp to the crisis for now.

All of this, Sajjad said, puts Pakistan in a precarious place and raises concerns about “the country’s stability.”

“The chance of the military establishment getting (a state of) emergency imposed in the country and keeping former Prime Minister Imran Khan behind bars for a prolonged time is fairly high, because none of the political actors are strong enough to pose a serious challenge to Khan’s PTI in polls,” he said.

“No situation is expected that would drastically alter the ground situation in favor of the incumbent government. Meanwhile, the army cannot afford Khan’s return to power.”

However, he adds it is “crucial to note” that such a move would have “severe consequences” for the country’s democratic institutions.

“The imposition of a state of emergency would likely result in the suspension of civil liberties, the suppression of political dissent, and the curtailing of press freedom,” he said. “This, in turn, could lead to further unrest and instability, making it harder for Pakistan to attract foreign investment and maintain its economic growth.”

Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan was unlawful, two days after his detention sparked nationwide protests and deadly clashes.

One of Khan’s aides said he remained in the custody of the Supreme Court for his own safety and will make another appearance Friday.

Khan was arrested on corruption charges by paramilitary troops on Tuesday in a sudden operation that saw officers smash their way into a courthouse in the capital Islamabad to detain him.

He was then held in a guesthouse inside police headquarters where he appeared for a special hearing in front of a judge behind closed doors on Wednesday before being remanded in custody for eight days for a charge brought by Pakistan’s anti-corruption agency.

Khan’s lawyers had petitioned against judicial proceedings against their client taking place in police headquarters instead of a courthouse.

Police had justified the move, saying it was to keep Khan away from the public to maintain law and order.

Following his arrest, eight people died and hundreds have been arrested as protests pitting his supporters against army supporters turned violent.

The former PM is accused of illegally acquiring land to construct a university and has also been charged in a separate case for unlawfully selling gifts sent to him by foreign leaders while in office.

In a pre-recorded statement released on YouTube by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) political party after his arrest, the former prime minister said he was “detained on incorrect charges” and told his supporters “the time has come for all of you to come and struggle for your rights.”

Tense showdown

The 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician’s arrest escalated what was already a tense showdown between the military and Khan’s supporters that had been simmering for months.

The largest protests took place in the cities of Lahore and Peshawar, both political strongholds for Khan, and saw crowds clash with security forces.

Hundreds of protesters stormed the headquarters of the national broadcaster Radio Pakistan in Peshawar, setting the building on fire.

Police said nearly 1,000 Khan supporters had been arrested in the country’s most populous Punjab province, according to Reuters.

Private schools were ordered shut nationwide, with certain countries, including the United States, issuing travel advisories. The government blocked mobile internet services in a bid to quell the chaos, disrupting access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Popular apps and digital payment systems have also been disrupted.

Two babies have been found alive on the shores of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Lake Kivu, days after floods and landslides killed more than 400 people in two villages in the country’s South Kivu province.

One of the babies was pulled alive from the rubble near the lake by locals on Tuesday, Maluku said, adding that the other child was rescued on Saturday after being found floating on the lake.

“The boy had a fractured femur and a facial injury and the girl was safe,” Maluku said of the rescued babies, who were found in Bushushu and Nyamukubi villages that were both devastated by the floods. “The injured child lost his mother while the other child’s deceased mother and father are without trace.”

The death toll has continued to rise in Bushushu and Nyamukubi after heavy rainfall through last week caused rivers to overflow and created mudslides that devastated the villages.

Twenty-six more bodies were recovered on Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 438, according to updated government figures. More than 1000 people are still reported missing.

The provincial government also said it was relocating residents affected by the floods to safer sites and funding medical care for the injured, as well as funeral costs for the deceased.

The DRC is located within the River Congo Basin where flood disasters are frequently reported and it continues to grapple with devastating effects of flooding across the country.

At least 10 people were killed on Wednesday in another landslide in the country’s Lubero territory, in its North Kivu Province, authorities said.

Described as “vile” and “unacceptable” and fueled by “the need to hurt,” ‘tragedy chanting’ is becoming an increasing concern to soccer authorities.

In England, the phenomenon is defined as the singing of songs about disasters that have befallen other clubs or their fan bases.

‘Tragedy chanting’ has marred a number of matches already this season, though they tend to only occur at matches involving one or both of Manchester United and Liverpool, with some opposition fans referencing the Munich air disaster or stadium tragedies of Hillsborough and Heysel.

In February 1958, 23 people – including eight Manchester United players and three members of the club’s staff – died as the team’s plane tried to take off from Munich’s airport.

In May 1985, 39 fans – 32 from Italy, four from Belgium, two from France and one from Northern Ireland – were killed in a stampede ahead of the European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels.

Then, in 1989, overcrowding in the stands ahead of the FA Cup semifinal between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough Stadium led to the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans.

Chris Rowland, editor of the website “The Tomkins Times,” which covers Liverpool FC, says “it’s hard to explain” why supporters of clubs that have experienced tragedies in the past would engage in tragedy chanting towards other fanbases.

“The need to hurt the opposing supporters, it seems to me, is the driving influence here. Any club that’s been involved [in a tragedy], nobody from those clubs should ever do it again.”

While most fans are quick to condemn the offensive chanting, the practice shows no sign of going away.

In February, Leeds and Manchester United released a joint statement following the club’s Premier League fixture after incidents of tragedy chanting from both sets of fans, which targeted both the Munich air disaster and the death of two Leeds fans in 2000 the day before a UEFA Cup semifinal against Galatasaray in Istanbul.

Another case of tragedy chanting by a group of Chelsea fans in a 0-0 draw against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge in early April – which the London club condemned as “hateful” – caused the Premier League to issue a statement saying it would be addressing the issue “as a priority and as a matter of urgency.”

Additionally, some Manchester City and Nottingham Forest fans have been criticized this season for singing songs about Hillsborough in matches against Liverpool.

However, in the return fixture against Liverpool at Anfield, the traveling Forest supporters were praised for unveiling a banner calling for respect for the victims and the end to tragedy chanting.

In an attempt to eradicate the issue, the Premier League has set up a working group with top-flight clubs to educate supporters about the tragedies in question and the impact such chanting has on fans.

The working group has also been in contact with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to discuss whether convictions can be pursued for fans that engage in tragedy chanting.

Geoff Pearson, a professor at Manchester University who has specialized in football crowd disorder, says self-policing within a fan base is “absolutely the key” to eradicating the practice, especially as some of the chants “aren’t by their content unlawful.”

This makes asking the police to get involved “quite challenging,” he explains.

“It’s humiliating for the fan that’s done that and I think this explains for a large part why we have almost eradicated overt racist chanting in English football stadiums.

“You go away with England [the national team] and you go into certain bars, and you will hear racist chanting, but you don’t hear it in the stadium because that’s where it has become unacceptable.

“But a combination of messaging and, occasionally – if you have a really entrenched problem – banning some individuals or taking criminal action if you can against some individuals has also made an impact.”

“If it isn’t the majority of supporters, it shouldn’t be the majority of the noise and there is an immediate practical step [people can take],” he says.

“The next thing is education through action by the clubs. Leeds United have been looking to do that,” Atkinson adds, referring to the anti-chanting campaign launched by the Yorkshire club last year.

“Arsenal and Fulham have both visited the [Hillsborough] memorial. I still think a wider societal understanding of what happened in 1989 and the smears that have followed would be no bad thing in general.”

Last month, Arsenal and Fulham’s team managers and captains laid wreaths at the Hillsborough memorial to mark the 34th anniversary of the disaster.

Our thoughts are with our friends at Liverpool FC and all the families of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster – April 15, 1989. pic.twitter.com/d5vRMYK7WX

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) April 8, 2023

In the immediate aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster and in the years that followed, the Sun newspaper and local South Yorkshire police launched a campaign of misinformation that tried to place the blame on Liverpool supporters, according to an independent inquest.

Ahead of Manchester United’s visit to Anfield last month, managers Jurgen Klopp and Erik ten Hag released a joint statement urging supporters of both clubs to stop chants in stadiums and online abuse relating to the tragedies.

“It is unacceptable to use the loss of life — in relation to any tragedy — to score points, and it is time for it to stop,” United boss ten Hag said.

“Those responsible tarnish not only the reputation of our clubs but also, importantly, the reputation of themselves, the fans, and our great cities.”

Liverpool’s Klopp added that chants about tragedies “have no place in football.”

“If we can keep the passion and lose the poison it will be so much better for everyone,” he said.

While this is by no means a new issue – Pearson notes some of the earliest Munich chants happened during the 1957/58 season – it has undoubtedly become more prevalent this season.

Charlotte Hennessey, whose father James was one of the 97 fans who died at Hillsborough, created a petition calling for tragedy chanting to be made a criminal offense, which has received more than 17,000 signatures.

Speaking to the Mirror earlier this month, she described what it feels like to hear opposition fans singing about the tragedy.

“All I wanted to do was watch the football in my own home with my children,” she said of Liverpool’s match at City. “Then I hear the hate chanting.

“The chanting starts, and I can’t even watch the match,” said Charlotte, 40. “I have to explain to my children why people are so cruel, and how the lies go all the way back to 1989.”

For those affected by the tragedies, hearing those chants “hurts us all,” Rowland says, “certainly those of us who were there.

“You only have to imagine how that hurts those who lost relatives and friends.”

Former NFL star JJ Watt has taken to the bars and drinking establishments of northwest England – all in the name of “research.”

Watt and his wife – former US Women’s National Team (USWNT) player Kealia – announced their investment in English club Burnley FC last week, after he retired from professional football in the NFL earlier this year.

And this week, the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year took a hands-on approach in getting to know the soccer club and its supporters, by embarking on a pub crawl on his way to the stadium.

“I’ve learned that the history, tradition and supporters, it’s all about respecting and honoring that,” the 34-year-old told BBC Breakfast on Tuesday.

“You never want to come in and try and do something that’s not true to who the club is, and what we’re trying to do is show people what real Burnley is about.”

Watt added that he had spent some time getting acquainted with the local drinking establishments.

“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. 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,” he added.

The Royal Dyche took to Twitter to mark Watt’s visit, sharing an image of him behind the bar on Monday.

“Another visit from NFL legend @JJWatt, what a pleasure it’s been. Lovely gent, such a great reception in the pub from all us Claret fans,” the pub added.

“What a fantastic addition to the club #UTC.”

Another visit from NFL legend @JJWatt , what a pleasure it’s been

Lovely gent, such a great reception in the pub from all us Claret fans

What a fantastic addition to the club #UTC

Now let’s finish on a high with 3 points, come on Burnley!! pic.twitter.com/BzcYKP4SsI

— The Royal Dyche (@theroyaldyche) May 8, 2023

Burnley is set to compete in the English Premier League (EPL) next season after earning promotion by winning the Championship, English football’s second division, under the stewardship of head coach Vincent Kompany.

Kompany is best known for his exploits as the captain of Manchester City, with whom he won four Premier League titles.