With his unique blend of confidence, style, and energy, Juventus and USMNT star Timothy Weah sits down with Boardroom to discuss investments, influences, and post-career aspirations.
Original Photography by Evan Pierce
The life of a top international footballer is nonstop; all gas, no, breaks, and Timothy Weah is certainly no exception.
Three days after Weah’s final match of the season for Italian giant Juventus, the 24-year-old New York City native was at Boardroom’s NYC headquarters as part of a whirlwind final week of May. Earlier that day, Weah announced his first major investment as an owner and stakeholder in Brooklyn FC, an expansion men’s soccer club that will begin play next year in the United Soccer League and a women’s team that begins play in the new USL Super League in August. Later that day, he threw out the first pitch at Citi Field before the New York Mets took on the Los Angeles Dodgers.
“One of the most important things in evaluating my decision in investing with BKFC was that they’re looking to invest in women’s football. And that’s something I take pride in,” Weah told Boardroom. “I definitely want to be a pioneer in building women’s football in the world, and what better way to start than in my home city?”
After his appearance in Queens, Weah traveled south to the suburbs of Washington, D.C., for a training camp for the US Men’s National Team as it prepared for this summer’s Copa América tournament, which begins for Weah and the Americans on Sunday with a match against Bolivia. It’s all part of a week in the life of someone who isn’t only a great athlete, but an ascendant global jet-setter and sports, fashion, music, and social media star.
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Weah is the son of a Jamaican mother and a Liberian soccer legend father, so it only makes sense that he boasts numerous diverse, eclectic interests. Just a quick check of his Instagram account, with 739,000 followers, illustrates his varied tastes and passions.
As he sat on a couch at Boardroom’s outdoor terrace, Weah meditated on his multiple interests, seeing opportunity in each and every one of them. In addition to achieving at the highest level on the pitch, Weah said he wants to open up his own restaurant one day, and his music ambitions as an R&B artist are very real, helped by his producer and best friend Fleetzy, who was also on hand for this NYC excursion.
“In Europe, my main focus is always obviously football,” Weah said, “but you always need that escape and space. So I definitely turn to music a lot. That’s definitely my muse. In the future, the goal is to successfully transition into music, whether that’s producing or being an artist myself.”
He and Fleetzy spend downtime working on music, which is far more than merely just a hobby to them. Weah’s R&B style is influenced by ecclectic array of artists, including Bob Marley, Sade, Luther Vandross, Brent Faiyaz, and Travis Scott.
Despite his many interests, the majority of Timothy’s time remains devoted to honing his football skills. Weah came to Juventus last July in an $11.2 million transfer from French side Lille and signed a reported five-year, $13.6 million contract. The massive contract set the foundation from which Weah can invest to ensure lasting, generational wealth.
The first questions he asks when looking to invest in or endorse a product or company are: “What would his return would be?” and “What’s the business’s potential?”
“I really love to invest in startups,” Weah, who would love to own a team one day, said, “and new businesses that have potential. And then, obviously, because I’m an athlete, investing in sports is No. 1. Something I look for when investing is something I can build and be hands-on with the people partnering in the business.”
Weah’s major influences include Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Jay-Z, Drake, and Gary Vaynerchuk. He’s befriended former French footballer and Juventus player Paul Pogba, whom Weah looks up to when discussing business, investing, and real estate when he visits Pogba’s house.
As someone who advocates individuality, self-expression, swagger, and style, it should come as no surprise that the best piece of advice Weah ever received was to just be yourself.
“When you’re in the room with a lot of these execs or a lot of people, you just want to be yourself,” Weah said, “because that’s all you can be. You want to be comfortable and not stressing too much. People love when you’re genuine. So that’s definitely the most important thing.”
As Weah gets deeper into his 20s, he wants to focus more on philanthropy. His mother founded the Clar Hope Foundation, which aims to create an equitable society in Liberia with healthy mothers and children who are empowered to prosper. Weah said there are so many causes he’d like to help and champion around the world, and he hopes to one day launch a charitable foundation of his own.
While Weah has posted fits featuring Balenciaga, Daily Paper, and Supreme recently on social media, he’s quite excited about his endorsement deal with New Balance. He said the brand has given him an opportunity to develop as an individual, a creator, an artist, and an influencer. His goal after his footballing days are over is to be a creative director at New Balance.
“It’s dope that you can do other things as well while being an athlete,” Weah said. “You don’t just have to stay In that box. And I want people to see me as not only a footballer but also as a creative. I want to be a mogul. And New Balance has given me the tools I need to succeed.”
He said that shoe design, whether a PE, a redesign, or a signature shoe with New Balance, is in the works and being discussed. Having a signature shoe, Weah continued, is the ultimate dream for an athlete with a passion for fashion who wants to put his own personal stamp and imprint on the industry.
Weah’s overarching goals are wide-ranging and audaciously ambitious; however, his main focus this summer is to train well and help the USMNT take Copa América gold on its home turf. For the rest of 2024, it’s to thrive with Juventus in both Serie A and the Champions League.
And when he’s not busy on the pitch, Weah plans to network and converse with as many important people in the business world as he can.
“I just want to get outside and meet people and have genuine, heart-to-heart conversations with a lot of these top dogs,” he said.
With his unique mix of confidence, style, bravado, energy, and rizz, Weah is well on his way to fulfilling and perhaps even surpassing his dreams as a global multi-hyphenate with the world at his fingertips.
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