Burnley may have been relegated from the Premier League last season, but that hasn’t stopped them going big with the reveal of their new away kit for the 2026-27 season that stars one of the club’s co-owners, who also just happens to be a bona fide NFL legend.
J.J. Watt has certainly helped boost the club’s international profile since he came on board at Turf Moor as a minority shareholder in 2023. But the former Houston Texans defensive end probably didn’t imagine that his ownership role at The Clarets would involve him delivering milk around the Lancashire town when he signed up for it three years ago.
Burnley have launched their cream-colored kit with an amusing video short starring Watt which is a loving salute to Burnley, the town, the club, and the people who call both home.
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In his central role, the five-time Pro Bowl player drives a vintage-style milk float around Burnley — a reference to his former nickname of “The Milk Man,” bestowed upon him due to his ability to always deliver the goods.
Living up to that moniker, Watt trawls around the town on his float, taking in a plethora of local landmarks and pubs while bumping into a series of local famous faces (and Clarets fans) en route — from English cricket icon Jimmy Anderson, to businessman Dave Fishwick, to Stan Ternent, who both played for and managed the club during his football career.
“From day one, I didn’t want this to be just another football shirt. I wanted to create something quintessentially Burnley,” Watt said of his role in designing the jersey. “Every decision we made started with one question: Are we doing the supporters of this club proud?
“As I’ve said many times before, this club existed long before I arrived and it will exist long after I’m gone. But during this time, my goal is to help honor its great past while also shepherding it to a brighter future.”
The most obvious feature is the return of the classic Burnley “coat of arms” crest, which has been restored to the shirt after fans expressed a desire to see the heraldic marque be reinstated.
Featuring two lions, a worker bee and the red rose of Lancashire, the crest was first worn on shirts in the late 1970s, then throughout the 1980s until being retired in favor of a streamlined shield from 2009 onward to coincide with the club’s ascension to the Premier League.
“Bringing back this iconic crest was extremely important to me, mainly because of how much it means to our supporters, but also because I’m just a massive fan of it,” Watt added. “This shirt belongs to the people of Burnley, and I hope they can see how much care and thought has gone into every single detail. I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve created together, and I hope it will be worn with pride for many years to come.”
The shirt also has a pattern inspired by the Elizabethan stonework of Gawthorpe Hall, the large 16th-century country house which looms imperiously over Burnley’s training ground. The club have actually trained on the grounds of Gawthorpe Hall since the 1950s and even once converted an unused barn into a gymnasium. Slightly more subtle is the typeface used around the neckline, which has been tailored to represent the lettering found on vintage Turf Moor ticket stubs from the 1960s and ’70s.
The new away kit will make its debut at home when Burnley face Italian side Torino in a preseason friendly at Turf Moor on Sunday.
