NFL great Tom Brady has become a minority owner of English second-tier club Birmingham City and wants to bring a winning mentality to the underperforming club.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion has partnered with the club’s holding company, US-based Knighthead Capital Management, and becomes chairman of a new advisory board.
"Maybe you are asking, 'What do you know about English football, Tom?'," Brady said in a video released by the club. "Well, let's just say I've got a lot to learn. But I do know a few things about winning."
Birmingham, who play in the EFL Championship, said Brady will “apply his extensive leadership experience and expertise across several areas of the club".
That includes working alongside the sports science department to advise on health, nutrition and recovery programmes.
“Birmingham is an iconic club with so much history and passion and to be part of the Blues is a real honour for me," Brady said.
Birmingham last played in the Premier League in 2011, the same year they won the English League Cup – one of two major trophies the club has captured in its 148-year history.
Brady joins a number of other American sports stars to invest in English football clubs.
Former NFL player JJ Watt recently became a minority investor in Burnley, who have just been promoted to the Premier League, while PGA Tour golfers Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas have said they will be minority owners of Leeds after investing in 49ers Enterprises, which is in the process of taking over the Yorkshire club.
Basketball star LeBron James has been a part-owner of Liverpool since 2011 because of a small stake in the club.
Brady has partnered with Knighthead Capital on several other ventures and the club's new chairman, Tom Wagner, spoke of the benefits his expertise can bring.
“Tom Brady joining the Birmingham team is a statement of intent. We are setting the bar at world class," Wagner said. “Tom is both investing and committing his time and extensive expertise. The goal that Tom has committed to own is to make Birmingham a respected leader in nutrition, health, wellness and recovery across the world of football.”
Brady won six Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and another with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021. He retired in February, after Tampa's loss in the play-offs.
Under Birmingham's new ownership, former Manchester City chief executive Garry Cook has taken up the same role and Hope Powell, the former coach of England's women's team, has been hired as women’s technical director.
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