Football League World
·14. November 2024
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Yahoo sportsFootball League World
·14. November 2024
The Clarets investor has taken to X to explain further why he bought into the club.
JJ Watt has taken to X to explain further why he bought into Burnley in 2023, citing the Lancashire side's support.
It has not been the best of seasons so far for the Clarets, despite the team currently sitting 4th in the Championship table. Scott Parker has struggled to get his players to play the free-flowing style of football that saw them win promotion under Vincent Kompany two years ago.
Nevertheless, at this moment in time, the support for the team is not wavering, and fans are still backing the club in droves.
There have not been many empty seats at Turf Moor in 2024/25, with Burnley having an average attendance of 19,825 in the opening three months of the season, up by nearly 100 from their last campaign in the second tier.
While they may not be a Premier League club currently, there is still an optimism surrounding the Lancashire club that they will return to the top flight soon, and that is shown by just how many turn up every other week to cheer on their team.
FanHub posted on XBurnley topping the table with an incredible 25.57% - ahead of West Bromwich Albion with 24.13%.
While it may not be the biggest of towns, this is proof of just how much supporters of the Clarets love their club, and also shows the locality of their fanbase.
Co-owner of the club and former NFL star, JJ Watt, took to his X account to explain his pride at being a part of Burnley, citing the support as another reason why he invested in it last summer.
He wrote: "When people ask “Why Burnley?” or “What makes English football special?”, stats like this come to mind. 25% of the town are at every match.
"Team and town are truly one. It’s engrained in the fiber of every supporter."
"A match is more than a match. It’s a family gathering," Watt concluded.
While the number of supporters following the club are excellent, there will be a desire to see the team improve on the pitch after a difficult few weeks.
The Clarets started the season in extremely impressive fashion, scoring nine goals in their first two games, however since then, they have only added nine more in 13 matches.
Parker is seemingly happy with his side playing in a more defensive style that stops opponents from getting on the front foot, but it does mean that games come and go without many chances for either side.
Burnley have an extremely strong squad filled with talented players that, when unleashed, will cause damage to defences in the Championship. But, currently, it feels as though they are being held back by their manager's style of play.
The longer this less exciting football is played for, the more likely it becomes that attendance figures start to dive. Watt has described the "team and town as one", but this will not continue if frustrations build.