Top clubs should be ‘protected at all costs’ – Wagner

In the midst of ongoing negotiations to redistribute a portion of their wealth within the EFL, Birmingham City owner Tom Wagner says lower-league clubs “should not take too much” from premier league players.

As a result of the government’s pressure, discussions over a deal to split Premier League revenue are continuing. A new independent football regulator is being established.

In the event that a deal is not reached, a bill to establish the regulator became law in July. It will have backstop authority.

The Premier League contends that English football can govern itself, claiming that a regulator will have “unprecedented and untested powers to intervene in the distribution of]its] revenues” and have “a negative impact on competitiveness and investment in world class talent.”

Wagner, an American investor, said at The Summit that “the best clubs in English football must be protected at all costs.” The top clubs can’t support the pyramid in excess of what we can take.

The interest will decline, particularly from the US market, which will encourage interest and capital flows into football, if the top teams are not dominant, I mean internationally, with the very best players and products.

The pyramid is a “loved by me” because “we have experienced a lot of it,” but the top clubs with high success have high brand acclaim and acclaim. We anticipate that interest will spur the growth of the entire pyramid.

Birmingham are among the richest clubs in the EFL, which has attained a record 111 points last season when they were promoted from League One to the Championship, supported by significant US investment since 2023.

According to Transfermarkt, Birmingham spent more than the rest of the division combined last season in League One, or £25 million.

Along with Welsh club Wrexham, which are owned by a consortium that includes Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, they are one of the EFL’s biggest spenders.

A two-thirds majority in the Premier League’s eleven teams could enable them to come together to pass significant changes, including a much-debated 39th game overseas.

Wagner supports hosting a game abroad in the United States, despite the club’s last-season suggestion to host Wrexham there.

He continued, “We have two US-owned clubs in the Championship, and our broadcast matches went very well there.” What we can do internationally is only scratching the surface, in my opinion, which is very exciting.

The co-founder of Knighthead Capital Management also discussed Birmingham’s proposed multipurpose stadium in depth in detail with the group of co-founders of Knighthead Capital Management.

The stadium, according to the club, will make Birmingham more of a football destination because it “doesn’t make sense” why people continue to travel to London and Manchester but leave the “second city”

Wagner added that he would welcome Birmingham’s local rivals, who are enjoying success on the field.

He said, “I respect fans enjoy the misery of their crosstown rivals,” but that if I were to support Villa or Wolves in our immediate area, I would also support clubs in the Birmingham area, which would lower the standard of Birmingham football.

Why wouldn’t we want Birmingham to become more interested because Manchester United and City are two fantastic clubs in the same city and London have many great crosstown rivals?