The third new Watt baby of 2025 has arrived.
In a joint Instagram post, NFL legend and Wisconsin native JJ Watt and his wife, Kealia, announced the June 14 birth of Niko Benjamin Watt, their second child together.
The couple shared several photos in the June 24 post, including one of big brother Koa, 2, kissing his new little brother on the forehead; the now-family of four cozied up in the hospital bed; one of JJ holding the newborn with one hand against his chest; and a beautiful photo of Kealia, a former professional soccer player, with the baby in her arms.
“Overcome with joy and gratitude,” the post was captioned.
“Let’s go!!! ” JJ’s brother, TJ, commented on the post. The Pittsburgh Steelers superstar and his wife, Dani, also a former pro soccer player, announced the birth of their first child together — a daughter named Blakely Marie — in March.
In April, JJ’s and TJ’s brother, Derek — a former NFL fullback — and his wife, Gabriella, welcomed their third child, Isabella Grace, their first daughter.
The Watt brothers are football royalty in Wisconsin. They all have their football jerseys retired at Pewaukee High School and later played at Wisconsin.
University of Wisconsin football and the Arizona Cardinals, two of Watt’s former teams, also expressed their congratulations via the Instagram post.
Oh, and another Wisconsin icon … Culver’s: “From one Wisconsin family to another, congrats on the newest addition to the team!”
More about JJ and Kealia Watt
JJ and Kealia married in a destination Bahamas wedding in 2020. The two began dating in 2016 after they were introduced by one of Watt’s former teammates from the Houston Texans. At the time, Kealia was playing for the Houston Dash, a team in the National Women’s Soccer League.
Kealia played eight seasons in the NWSL after starring collegiately at North Carolina.
JJ, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, played 12 seasons in the NFL. He’s eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2028.
JJ has remained in the spotlight since his retirement — just in a different capacity.
He’s starred in commercials and has made regular appearances on popular sports-talk shows. In June 2023, he announced he’d be a CBS Sports NFL studio analyst starting that fall. Watt has appeared on the CBS pregame studio show and first called a game in the booth for Netflix on Christmas Day. This fall, he’ll be an NFL TV game analyst on CBS.
JJ and Kealia are also minority owners of the English soccer team, Burnley FC.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: JJ Watt and his wife, Kealia, announce the birth of their second child
Reporting by Hannah Kirby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
