Simon Jordan reveals what John Terry can bring to Colchester that Tom Brady can't at Birmingham City | OneFootball

John Terry has been linked to an ownership role at Colchester United

Colchester United have been linked with a potential takeover involving John Terry.

The club have confirmed that discussions are underway with a consortium that includes the former England defender.

However, it remains to be seen whether chairman and owner Robbie Cowling will be willing to cash in on his stake in the League Two side.

Terry is currently working at his former club Chelsea as a coach in the academy system, having retired from his playing career in October 2018.

The 45-year-old could become the latest former player to take a step into club ownership in England, with the likes of Gary Neville and Luka Modric already taking on such roles.

The likes of Tom Brady and Ryan Reynolds have also entered football ownership in England with Birmingham City and Wrexham, respectively.

Simon Jordan compares John Terry to Tom Brady at Birmingham

It has been revealed by The Telegraph that Terry will be involved in all football decisions if this proposed takeover goes through.

It's believed that the takeover could be worth £14 million for the League Two side, but it remains to be seen what kind of ownership stake the former England defender will have.

Simon Jordan has claimed that Terry will be able to bring more to the table at Colchester than what Brady is providing for Birmingham in the Championship.

The former NFL star owns roughly three per cent of the Blues, but the former Crystal Palace owner and chairman believes that the experience Terry has of playing football at the highest level will bring a lot more to Colchester.

“If John is indeed interested, why wouldn’t you have somebody that’s operated at the highest level on the field of football at some form of ambassador or significant management representation inside a football framework?” said Jordan, via Talksport.

“The star quality of Tom Brady is different to the football nous of John Terry, so there’s a different dynamic.

“It will be interesting to see what the Colchester fans think of it, how they view it.”

Jordan has also claimed that these former athletes are doing well to get into these business opportunities without having to invest too much of their money to be involved, and that this will be the case for Terry as well, if this takeover goes through.

“When you get these guys, Modric, they’re not going to run the football club, they’re not going to be there dawn til dusk, they’re not going to be making all the decisions, they’re not going to be putting any finances in — and if they do it’s going to be a very small amount of their wealth,” he added.

“The best thing [David] Beckham ever did was go to America and get the next cab off the rank without having to put a single dime into Miami to be able to create a franchise that apparently Beckham owns.

“And it will be like this with John.

“And there’s nothing wrong with that, by the way, that’s smart.

“If you’re in a position where your currency trades you at that level, yet you can’t put your hand anywhere near your pocket to be able to achieve something, fair play to you.”

Terry worked as a coach at Aston Villa and Leicester City before taking on his role in the Chelsea academy system in July 2023.

The former centre-back has never worked as the main manager of a senior first team squad, but has worked under Dean Smith as a senior coach.

Colchester are currently 13th in the League Two table, nine points adrift of the play-off places with just four games remaining, while the team are also 27 ahead of the relegation zone.

Meanwhile, Birmingham are 15th in the Championship in what is their first year back in the division after winning the League One title in 2025.

Chris Davies is currently under pressure to keep his position as head coach following an underwhelming end to the campaign.

John Terry ownership could be a route to management career

Terry’s coaching career has yet to take the step forward into a management position even though he’s spent the last several years working as a coach.

If he is to take the step into becoming a manager, then perhaps doing so at a club like Colchester where he has an ownership stake could be his long-term goal, particularly if he's going to be involved in all football decisions.

It would certainly bring a lot of attention to the League Two side to have a multiple-time Premier League winner and a Champions League champion involved in such a prominent role within the club.

There’s no doubt that he could be more involved given his background as an elite level footballer, while Brady’s role at Birmingham has been mostly superficial since coming on board with Tom Wagner.