J.J. Watt had no problem calling out Real Salt Lake after the club’s social media post left out the very person who arguably had the strongest local tie of anyone in the photo. The moment turned a routine welcome into a small but loud public correction, with Watt making it clear that Kealia Ohai Watt deserved her own mention.
Watt and his wife were at the MLS matchup Wednesday night as Real Salt Lake faced Burnley F.C., the English club the couple partly owns. The team greeted them online with a friendly message, but the post treated the appearance like a celebrity sighting and skipped over Kealia’s background entirely.
“Welcome to the Riot, @JJWatt and fam,” the team wrote.
That was enough to set Watt off. His response pointed out that the woman in the photo was not just “the wife of” a famous athlete, but a standout soccer player with deep roots in Utah and a résumé that speaks for itself.
“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,” Watt said in a reply.
It was a sharp reminder that Kealia Ohai Watt has built a serious soccer legacy of her own. She attended Alta High School in Sandy, played close to where the game was held, and stacked up state titles before moving on to the next level.
Her rise did not stop there. She went on to win a national championship at the University of North Carolina, then became the second overall pick in the NWSL College Draft by the Houston Dash. She also captained the Dash from 2016 until she was traded to the Chicago Red Stars in 2020.
Her place in the sport runs even deeper than her club career. Ohai played for the U.S. Women’s National Team and made history with the fastest first goal in USWNT history, a kind of stat that tends to stick around because it is fast, rare, and memorable.
Real Salt Lake eventually backed up and owned the miss. The club said it had made an “honest mistake” and apologized, adding that it was “sincerely sorry.”
“When we welcomed the Watt family to America First Field, we should have recognized Kealia Watt for exactly who she is,” before noting many of her accomplishments.
“We are deeply sorry. Thank you for all you do for the sport.”
The exchange landed because it tapped into something bigger than a single social post. In sports, it is easy for a famous name to swallow everyone else in the frame, even when the overlooked person has their own real claim to the spotlight.
https://x.com/realsaltlake/status/2077837260528267482
That was especially true here, since the Watts are tied to the area and to the sport in a very direct way. Burnley’s ownership group includes the couple, and the club played in the Premier League last season, giving their soccer connection a serious international edge.
Ohai’s family ties also stretch further into Watt’s football world. Her brother-in-law is Brian Cushing, Watt’s former Houston Texans teammate, which only adds another layer to a story that keeps circling back to sports, family, and shared history.
For anyone looking at the photo, the point was simple. Kealia Ohai Watt was never some background extra, and Watt made sure the internet knew it.
