Whereas ready for a name from his agent in September, Isaac Rochelle, knowledgeable soccer participant on the lookout for a workforce, watched the Nationwide Soccer League’s opening weekend video games on tv along with his younger daughter. His spouse wanted a babysitter.
Allison Kuharczyk, Rochelle’s spouse and a web-based influencer with greater than three million followers on TikTok, was nearer to the sector than he was due to a partnership with NBC Sports activities. She criss-crossed continents on a personal jet with different content material creators to doc a weekend of raucous tailgates, concession meals and stadium environments at NFL video games in Kansas Metropolis, Missouri; Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Detroit.
By documenting her life-style because the spouse of knowledgeable athlete, Kuharczyk turned extra well-known than Rochelle, who reached the very best stage of her sport however by no means turned a family identify. Once they’re collectively in public, Rochelle stated, individuals generally ask for Kuharczyk’s autograph as a substitute of his.
“It does not harm my ego — I am excited for her — however it was loopy,” stated Rochelle, a defensive finish who has performed for 4 NFL groups in seven seasons.
Because the NFL and its media companions court docket extra feminine viewers, they more and more defer to the gamers’ wives and girlfriends. (The partnership of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift was inevitable final season.) They hope that future followers, bored with sports activities jargon and gamers battling one another on the sector, may as a substitute reply to clothes units and glamorous luxurious suite experiences.
“When ladies see me sharing concerning the NFL, they’re lastly like, ‘Wow, I can really be interested by that different than simply the stats,'” Kuharczyk, 29, stated. “I feel there’s a place for everybody in sports activities.”
She added: “You do not have to be a giant identify for individuals to be invested in your story.”
Rochelle, 29, performed school soccer at Notre Dame and was a seventh-round draft decide by the Los Angeles Chargers in 2017. Whereas he struggled to remain on groups’ rosters for a number of seasons, he was additionally lively on their social media channels, repeatedly volunteering for tasks. He proposed to Kuharczyk, whom he met at a university celebration whereas taping the Chargers podcast in 2020.
“If you happen to spend 5 minutes with Allison and Isaac collectively, you see their chemistry and the way real they’re,” stated Jason Lavin, Chargers senior vp of artistic and model content material. “That kind of connection is one thing you wish to spotlight in your feed.”
In the course of the coronavirus pandemic, the couple posted repeatedly on TikTok. Rochelle took viewers behind the scenes of NFL routines, together with the buffet meals gamers eat the night time earlier than video games. Lots of Kucharczyk’s posts confirmed the much less glamorous facet of Rochelle’s nomadic profession, residing aside and packing as much as transfer to cities — Indianapolis, Cleveland, Las Vegas — every time he modified groups.
Whereas 9 months pregnant, Kuharczyk, who labored as an inside designer, informed her followers she cried when the Las Vegas Raiders launched Rochelle in November 2023, weeks earlier than her due date. Kuharczyk, who admits they’ve monetary sources not accessible to everybody, says the net neighborhood she’s fostered has helped her by way of their chaotic instances.
“I feel sharing makes me really feel much less alone,” she stated.
Because the couple’s social presence grew, the NFL took discover. The league despatched Rochelle a jersey with the phrases “Mr. Kuch” and Kucharczyk was a pink carpet correspondent at a Tremendous Bowl occasion final 12 months. The couple additionally participated in a voter registration drive with former President Barack Obama.
“On this subsequent era of content material creators, they perceive how they will each achieve success and what they should do to assist one another,” stated Ian Trombetta, the NFL’s senior vp of social, influencer and content material advertising and marketing.
British tabloids coined the acronym ‘WAG’ (wives and girlfriends) twenty years in the past to seek advice from footballers’ companions, and a number of other well-known footballers have had equally well-known spouses. Supermodel Gisele Bundchen was a Tom Brady’s public defender earlier than their 13-year marriage ended in 2022 and singer Ciara married quarterback Russell Wilson in 2016
Nevertheless it was Swift’s relationship with Kelce which sparked a brand new stage of curiosity.
Kristin Juszczykspouse of San Francisco 49ers linebacker Kyle Juszczyk, launched a clothes line this month after designing outerwear for Swift and Olympic gymnast Simone Biles (who’s married to Chicago Bears security Jonathan Owens). Fox Sports activities recorded segment this season with Alix Earle, a TikTok influencer with seven million followers who’s relationship Miami Dolphins broad receiver Braxton Berrios. And this month, Netflix will release a series“WAGs to Riches,” which follows the numerous others of athletes and entertainers, together with Keeta Hill, the spouse of Dolphins broad receiver Tyreek Hill.
Rochelle by no means obtained that decision from his agent, however he is nonetheless figuring out in hopes that an NFL workforce will signal him. Even when he have been to retire, the league stated it could proceed to work with the pair.
“It is really simpler as a result of there might be extra time,” Trombetta stated with amusing.
