Tom Brady only owns 3.3% of Birmingham and has no voting rights – so what does that mean?

Tom Brady holds just 333 ‘B’ shares in Championship club Birmingham City and has no voting rights, Companies House filings have revealed.

In August, Brady invested in US-based Shelby Companies Limited (SCL), a subsidiary of Knighthead Capital Management. Shelby Companies Limited completed its takeover of Birmingham last summer, acquiring a controlling stake

Shelby Companies is named after the Birmingham-based family featured in BBC period crime drama Peaky Blinders.

It has been a difficult first season for Birmingham’s new owners. The club has been relegated from the Championship and will play in League 1 next season.

Tom Wagner, founder of Knighthood Capital Management, is the ultimate owner of the club and previously boasted that Birmingham had become “the most talked about football team in the world” as Brady’s investment led to more than 17 billion “positive media impressions”.

Since Brady’s investment was announced in August, little has been said about his financial involvement and now Companies House filings show it is minimal.

The Athletic break down exactly how much Birmingham City Brady owns…

How much of Birmingham City does Tom Brady own?

“There were some unknowns in his relationship with the club,” explains Kieran Maguire, football finance expert and lecturer at the University of Liverpool.

“Firstly, to what extent has he bought into the club? Looks like it’s just over three percent. The problem going forward is that he has no voting rights with these shares.

A Brady mural outside Birmingham’s St Andrews Stadium (Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

“This makes it possible for Knighthead Capital Management to find a new owner for Birmingham City as they could sell 100% of the voting shares.

“It reinforces the view that Tom Brady’s involvement is one of influencer and celebrity endorsement, which I think we’ve all thought of anyway, rather than a financial investor.”

How much did that cost him?

Documents from Companies House suggest that Brady’s 330 ‘B’ shares in Shelby Companies Ltd appear to have cost a total of 3.3 pence, giving each share a nominal value of 0.01 pence, although there is a chance that this to have paid more than that.

However, there is no indication in the Companies House filing to suggest that this is the case.

“(His investment) would appear to be financially negligible,” Maguire explains. “We don’t know if he paid a premium for the shares, but I suspect not.

“You would like Tom Brady’s name to be attached to the club and the benefits it brings in a similar way to the Aston Villa post when Tom Hanks comes to Villa Park.

“It’s not a done deal in terms of the numbers, but it does indicate that Tom Brady’s investment is a non-financial one and he’s not going to put money into the club in the same way that Knighthead will.”

How does this compare to other celebrity sports investors?

Brady is not the first former NFL star to invest in English football. In May 2023, JJ Watt, a former defender, became a minority investor in Burnley, who had just been relegated to the Championship after being promoted last year.

Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have been hugely successful since buying the entire club in February 2021, overseeing back-to-back promotions to League One as well as selling their popular documentary Welcome to Wrexham to Disney+. They still own 95 percent of the club in an equal split.

McElhenney and Reynolds still own 95% of Wrexham (Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images)

NBA star LeBron James has been involved as a stakeholder in Liverpool since 2011, but swapped his two percent stake for a one percent stake in Fenway Sports Group.

Seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton became a minority shareholder in the NFL’s Denver Broncos when the Walton-Penner family ownership group purchased the franchise in 2022 for $4.65 billion.

Why is he involved in the club?

Brady became chairman of a new advisory board, working directly with the board and members of the club’s management team.

The August statement noted how he will use his experience helping the sports science department advise on health, nutrition and recovery programs. They also want to work closely with the commercial department, looking for new opportunities for Birmingham.

“Tom is investing and committing his time and extensive expertise,” Wagner said in August. “The purpose that Tom has committed himself to is to make Birmingham City a respected leader in nutrition, health, wellness and recovery in the world of football.”

While these are nice platitudes, as an investor Brady will want to see a return on the money, however minimal he may have put into the club.

What did he say about his role?

In August, Brady called Birmingham an “iconic club with so much history” and that being an investor was a “real honour”.

“Birmingham City is all about teamwork and determination and I’m delighted to be working alongside the board, management and players to make the city’s second club fit for purpose,” Brady’s statement read.

“I’ve been part of some amazing teams in my day and I can’t wait to apply my perspective to create the same success here in Birmingham.”

When Brady’s investment was announced, Wagner said the 46-year-old was not there for “promotional purposes.”

During Netflix’s Greatest Roast of All Time, a live show where comedians and former teammates took turns mocking Brady, his investment in Birmingham was raised by former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

“I see your football team, Birmingham City, has been taken down to another level in the English Football League,” Belichick said.

“For those of you unfamiliar with English football and the intricacies of their obscure relegation system, I’ll put it in English for you: they’re hell.”

Belichick then turned to Brady with a wry smile and said, “It’s not that easy to run a team, is it Tom?”

How has Birmingham fared since its investment?

With Birmingham playing in League One next season, it’s safe to say it’s been a tough first year for Brady.

The American bosses decided to sack John Eustace in October when the club were doing relatively well and replaced him with Wayne Rooney, who then oversaw nine defeats in 15 games.

Rooney was sacked on 2 January, with Tony Mowbray taking over as Manchester United’s top scorer. The club then had to place Gary Rowett in caretaker charge in March as Mowbray had to retire to receive treatment for an unspecified illness.

Birmingham City were relegated to League One this season (Cameron Smith/Getty Images)

Mowbray has taken official sick leave until pre-season.

The owners were widely criticized for sacking Eustace, especially as they had started the season well and opted for Rooney.

Will Brady’s finances be affected by Birmingham’s relegation?

Relegation will undoubtedly hit the club’s bottom line, but when you consider his level of investment, Maguire does not believe Birmingham’s entry into League One will affect Brady’s bank balance.

“Not a dime,” Maguire said when asked how much the former NFL quarterback’s demotion cost him.

“He is looking for positive benefits and there are no negative risks. They are non-voting shares, so he is not involved in reinvesting the infrastructure and building the team next year.”

What other investments does he have?

Brady has several investments, including “TB12,” which is a wellness brand he launched with his longtime trainer Alex Guerrero in 2013. He co-founded “Brady,” a performance sportswear brand in 2021.

The seven-time Super Bowl winner is also a minority investor in the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders and the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, while also investing in the Las Vegas Night Owls, a Major League Pickleball club.

However, not everything was simple.

According to the New York Times, Brady lost $30 million on his investment in FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange, when they filed for bankruptcy in November 2022.

(Top photo: Cameron Smith/Getty Images)