Tom Brady has his finger in many sporting pies. As rumors swirl that the legendary NFL player will increase his stake – and possibly influence – in the Las Vegas Raiders, we thought looking at one of the other investments Brady made in recent years might be interesting. He has, of course, invested in the Las Vegas WNBA team, but one of his most intriguing moves was in Birmingham City FC, a historic English soccer club but one that has not tasted sustained success in the modern era. Brady hopes to change that, just as he hopes to change the fortunes of the Raiders.
Brady’s Birmingham City investment began in 2023. He took a minority stake in the club, but, importantly, he also took on a role as chairman of an advisory board. At that time, Birmingham was moored in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English soccer. The goal is to be established in the Premier League’s upper tier. Birmingham has played at the top level in the past (the last time was the 2010-2011 season), but the team suffered relegation to the Championship and has struggled ever since.
Birmingham in Early Trouble
You can appreciate that there was a lot of excitement when Brady became part of the ownership setup in the summer of 2023. Birmingham is the UK’s second-largest city, but it’s more parochial than cosmopolitan. Having one of the greatest athletes in history roll into town was quite the spectacle. Brady and his co-investors promised big things for the team, but, in truth, things couldn’t have gone any worse in the first season. Birmingham suffered another relegation to England’s third-tier, EFL League One.
Yet, all is not lost. Birmingham’s blueprint shows it might be better to break eggs to make an omelet. By that, we mean it probably did the project little harm in the long term to suffer that relegation, and it may benefit the team’s prospects. Birmingham is a million miles away from being a Premier League-caliber team, just as a glance at the Super Bowl odds will tell you that Las Vegas has a lot of work to do before becoming a Playoff contender. Yet, transforming a team is about more than what happens on the field, and that’s a lesson here.
Changes to Coaching and Executive Roles
Of course, we know that the Raiders hierarchy is looking for a new head coach. Birmingham City has had six (six!) since Brady became involved in 2023. We included interim head coaches at that time, so it was not as bad as it looked. Yet, the point is that the Blues (as the locals call the team) needed to settle on the right person for the job. The club seems to have found that in current head coach Chris Davies.
Beyond the coaching setup, Birmingham is being restructured in all aspects of the club’s operations. And this, in our view, is also important as a lesson. The Raiders remains an organization in a state of flux. Some of that is natural, with even the move to Las Vegas taking time to settle. But the ambitions for the team must go beyond being competitive next year or the year after that. At Birmingham, long-term structures are being implemented to ensure the team is competitive ten years from now. The fans know this because they have not been too bothered about the club’s ignominious relegation at the end of the 2023/24 season.
Of course, there is no magic wand, and we should remind everyone that Tom Brady is not the sole decision-maker at the Raiders or Birmingham City. Yet, his consultancy and leadership clearly point to sustained success, much like he and Bill Belichick had for the best part of two decades at the New England Patriots.
In the end, the point is this. Just like Birmingham City fans, Raiders fans are naturally excited that a big name like Brady gets involved with their team. Yet, it is about more than a name. Brady and his investment partners want to push a sustainable and prolonged success model. He’d love to see the Raiders compete in the 2025 NFL season, and everyone does. However, we suspect that Brady and his partners are also looking at the long term and that, perhaps, should be more exciting for fans.
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