NFL icon Tom Brady the trendsetter? LeBron James & Novak Djokovic crossover talk as Birmingham highlight benefits of getting sporting GOATs on board

Coaches throughout the sporting world will often speak of finding “marginal gains”, with there little to separate elite performers at the very highest level. It is those fine details that can be the difference between winning and losing.

Birmingham City are among those to have bought into the winning mentality of a legendary figure, with American football GOAT Brady adding his expertise to the ranks at St Andrew’s as a minority stakeholder in the club.

His passion has shone through in an Amazon Prime Video documentary series, with the potential there for the knowhow of more household names to be sought. Quizzed on whether crossovers could become more prevalent, former Blues striker Cameron Jerome - speaking in association with Bettingkollen.se - told GOAL: “Absolutely. I believe that football is echoing other sports in that respect - in terms of your LeBrons, your Novak Djokovics, Roger Federers, Tom Bradys, people that have played at the top of their respective sports for so many years and achieved such success.

“In football you have got the likes of Messi and Ronaldo, Luka Modric, that are playing well into their late 30s, early 40s and they are still hungry for success.”

Some of Brady’s comments at Birmingham have raised eyebrows, after he was caught on camera questioning the work ethic of Wayne Rooney during a forgettable stint as Blues manager for the ex-England captain.

That, though, is why he has been brought on board - to raise standards across the board. Jerome added on the role that Brady has to play in the West Midlands, with 100 per cent effort being demanded at all times: “Tom is someone who emphasises that and has embodied that mindset throughout his career - that’s why he had such a long and successful career in his own sport.

“It was a bit tongue in cheek some of the comments that I have read, some of the snippets from the documentary, but he’s a passionate owner. He’s a passionate guy about winning, he wants to create that winning mentality at Birmingham City and when you are an owner of a football club, you are within your rights to say what you want.

“People could look at it and say it’s a little bit harsh given the circumstances, but owners will say what they want - as we are seeing with other clubs at the moment. Owners are entitled to say what they want, it’s their football club, they are putting the money in, so they have every right to say and act as they please.”

Brady and Co were given plenty to smile about last season, as Birmingham swept to the League One title in record-breaking style - fending off competition from Wrexham in the process - and a positive start to the 2025-26 Championship campaign has been made with seven points being collected across four fixtures.