Birmingham City owner Tom Wagner says lower-league clubs “should not take too much” from top Premier League sides, amid ongoing negotiations to redistribute a share of their wealth within the EFL.
Talks over a deal to share Premier League income within the football pyramid are carrying on against a backdrop of pressure from the government as a new independent football regulator is being established.
A bill to establish the regulator became law in July and will have backstop powers to force a deal should it not be agreed.
The Premier League argues English football can govern itself, stating 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”.
Speaking at The Summit, part of Leaders Week London 2025, Wagner, an American investor, said: “I think the top clubs in English football have to be protected at all costs. We can’t take too much from the top clubs to support the pyramid.
“If you have a situation where the top teams are not dominant, I mean internationally, with the very best players and product, then the interest will wane – particularly from the US market which will drive interest and capital flows into football.
“I love the pyramid – we have experienced a lot of it – but the top clubs that are highly successful have significant brand value and draw interest. We hope that interest will help grow the entire pyramid.”
Backed by significant US investment since 2023, Birmingham are among the richest clubs in the EFL and secured a record 111 points when earning promotion from League One to the Championship last season.
Birmingham spent £25m in League One last season, more than the rest of the division combined, according to Transfermarkt.
They are among the biggest spenders in the EFL, along with Welsh club Wrexham, who are owned by a consortium that features Hollywood duo Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.
Eleven of the 20 teams in the Premier League have US owners and a two-thirds majority could allow them to band together to vote through major changes in the sport, including a much-debated overseas 39th match.
Wagner is supportive of playing a match overseas in the United States, with the club having floated the idea of playing Wrexham there last season.
He said: “We have two US-owned clubs in the Championship and our matches did very well in the US when broadcast. I think we are only scratching the surface of what we can do internationally and that’s very exciting.”
The co-founder of Knighthead Capital Management also spoke extensively about Birmingham’s Sport Quarter development plans, which include a proposed multipurpose 62,000-seat stadium.
The club believe the stadium will allow Birmingham to become more of a football destination as it “doesn’t make sense” that people keep travelling to London and Manchester but skip the “second city”.
Wagner also said he would welcome Birmingham’s local rivals enjoying on-field success.
“I respect fans enjoy the misery of their crosstown rivals,” he said, “but if I was to root against Villa or Wolves in our immediate area then I am rooting against clubs in the Birmingham area and lessening the quality of Birmingham football.
“Manchester United and City are two great cities in the same city, London have a lot of great crosstown rivals, so why wouldn’t we want that for Birmingham to increase the interest?”
Wagner also explained that he and his colleagues had no interest in multi-club ownership and that they had explored investing a minority stake in a London side but considered it overvalued before buying into Birmingham.