Tom Brady says Birmingham City must keep spending to ‘keep up with Wrexham’ | OneFootball

Tom Brady believes Birmingham City must keep up with the spending of Wrexham owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney to compete with their Championship rivals.

The Birmingham City minority owner said he has been “impressed” by Wrexham’s work on and off the pitch, with the Welsh club making six signings this summer.

The biggest is set to be completed soon, with Wales striker Nathan Broadhead reportedly set to join the Red Dragons in a record club £7.5million transfer from Ipswich.

Birmingham, who pipped Wrexham to the League One title last season, have made eight signings of their own this summer, and Brady says they need to make more additions to compete in the second tier.

“We’ve got to (keep spending),” the NFL quarterback great told The Sports Agents podcast.

“We’ve got to keep up with one another.

“Wrexham have, I’d say, done an incredible job.

“I mean, you can’t be anything but excited about what they’ve done for that club… I’m so impressed by Wrexham.

“What they do on the pitch, off the pitch, and again, they’re in a great position to succeed as well.”

Tom Brady, right, with Wrexham co-owner Rob McElhenney (PA Archive)

Asked about the rivalry in a fixture that has been dubbed the ‘Hollywood Derby’, Brady said: “We’re going to talk a lot of smack in the meantime between all of us because it’s pretty fun theatre and I think there’s some little friendly side bets going on.

“But make no mistake, the people who are going to decide the fate of those games are the players wearing those jerseys.”

Brady made 10 Super Bowl appearances and had seven victories – both individual records – in a storied 23-year NFL career between 2000 and 2022.

The 47-year-old admits he would love to bring the Super Bowl to Birmingham once the club’s new 62,000-seater stadium is built in Bordesley Green.

He said: “That would be pretty amazing.

“I don’t make all those decisions. I’m not sure how much I can influence those decisions.

“But I think that my partner, Tom Wagner (Birmingham chairman), is an incredible man, incredible businessman.

“He has huge ambitions for the club, and I would never bet against anything that he tries to accomplish.”

Former Celtic and Tottenham coach Chris Davies steered Birmingham to League One glory with a record 111 points from 46 games.

The previous season Birmingham were relegated to the third tier for the first time in 29 years, with former England captain Wayne Rooney having been sacked in January after just 15 matches in charge.

Brady said: “I think that’s a very natural part of a growth process, that you are going to face adversities along the way.

“When I look back at those years, I’m very proud of what we accomplished because of what we overcame.

“Whatever happened two years ago or a year ago makes really no impact on where we’re at now.

“I think this club has a great manager. The expectations and standards have been set at a different level, and we’re going into this Championship season with great excitement.

“We want to restore it (Birmingham) to the glory that it’s been in the past. To move up and to be promoted to the Premier League is a very daunting task, but it can be achieved.”