TV Guide: Visionary or vanity? Brady bunch will discover if they can step up

What does Brady actually do in Birmingham? Unclear, but chairman Tom Wagner has said he’s “engaged with the club 365 days a year”, which is certainly one way to get over a divorce. Head coach Chris Davies called him “a world-class consultant”. “I’m not in there on an operational role,” Brady said himself. “I’m here in a visionary role.” The documentary includes such insight as “what’s different between soccer and football? Nothing.” He promises “this is not a vanity thing”, while pouting into the camera.

Promoted after spending more money than any League One side had before, Birmingham kick off the Championship season at St Andrew’s against relegated Ipswich on Friday (Sky Sports Football, 8pm). These are two of the three bookies’ favourites for promotion – with Ipswich top – but the Brady Bunch are still backed to finish above Sheffield United and Leicester, and well above Wrexham.

The Documentary Derby pair will almost certainly make this the most popular Championship season ever worldwide, as people tune in to see whether Brady’s world-class consultancy translates to a cold, windy Tuesday night in Stoke.

Before that, the Hundred begins at Lord’s on Tuesday, the final season of the crisp packet era you know and loathe before the near-billion pound investment and inevitable makeover kicks in. London Spirit (Tyrrells) host Oval Invincibles (KP Nuts) in a double-header (Sky Sports Main Event, 2.30pm). Spirit were the most expensive franchise sold in the auction, with American-based Tech Titans paying £144m for 49%.

In the men’s, David Warner and new captain Kane Williamson should be two of the Spirit’s top three, while the Invincibles boast Rashid Khan, Will Jacks, Sam and Tom Curran, Jason Behrendorff.

In the women’s game, the reigning champions Spirit can call on two elite overseas all-rounders in Australia’s Grace Harris and Indian Deepti Sharma, alongside Georgia Redmayne and English spinners Sarah Glenn and Charlie Dean. There is at least one Hundred double-header every day between 5 and 31 August. Goodie.

And with the Women’s Rugby World Cup fast approaching, England play their final warm-up match against France next Saturday (BBC iPlayer and England Rugby YouTube, 8.10pm). The 16-team tournament begins on 22 August at the Stadium of Light as the summer of women’s sport runs into autumn.

Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images