Inside Birmingham’s feel-good relegation, with ticket sales UP, wages at staggering level and ambitious plans for future
IF EVER there was a feel-good reaction to being relegated from the Championship, Birmingham had it last year. You could have forgiven supporters for venting their anger after a season which saw them use four managers and drop into League One. RexTom Wagner has helped transform Birmingham[/caption] GettyTom Brady invited pal David Beckham to watch against Wrexham[/caption] Brum striker Jay Stansfield and Co are now hoping to stun NewcastleRex But with the stardust of seven-time Super Bowl-winner Tom Brady in the background and a £20million transfer kitty, this was different. The message from the club now is: “It’s not the league you’re in, it’s the club that you are.” Even fans who demand instant success could see there was something bigger at work here. Under American owner Tom Wagner and the Knighthead Capital Management group — who took over in 2023 — things are on the up. Blues sit four points clear at the top of League One, with two games in hand on their promotion rivals. And as they host Premier League side Newcastle on Saturday, the gap between the teams may not be as great as you think. The Tynesiders have plans for a new stadium but so does big-spending Wagner, with a 60,000-seater arena scheduled for 2029 at the earliest. It could have been a summer of misery after Brum’s relegation but season ticket sales were their best in 13 years, such was the optimism over the club’s rebuild. CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Most home games are near sell-outs at the 29,409-capacity St Andrew’s. Manager Chris Davies was allowed to spend £20m on a squad rebuild, including a new League One transfer record to bring in striker Jay Stansfield from Fulham for an initial £12m rising to £15m. The wage bill this season is in the region of £20m-£9m more than the next highest in the division — which would see them having a sizeable budget even in the Championship. But crucially there are no Profit and Sustainability Rules at work here. Birmingham are subject to SCMP — Salary Cost Management Protocols — and, as a newly-relegated club, they can spend 75 per cent of turnover on player expenditure. Financial priorities will change with a return to PSR in the Championship. In the second tier clubs can lose up to £39m over a rolling three-year period before being hit with any punishment. But with promotion looking likely, Davies will be looking at another large transfer kitty. That is currently being helped by the generation of huge revenues from partnerships with the likes of Nike, Delta Air Lines and sportswear brand Undefeated. And on Super Bowl weekend, it cannot be forgotten NFL legend Brady is also listed as a “minority owner” at St Andrew’s. When Birmingham hosted Hollywood-backed Wrexham earlier this season, Brady brought along pal David Beckham to watch the game. Yet, despite plans for a new Sports Quarter and super stadium, an incredible £15m was spent on their current home in the summer. And that was after making repairs to dilapidated areas of the ground. ReutersNewcastle celebrated reaching the Carabao Cup final but face a daunting FA Cup fourth-round clash at League One leaders Birmingham[/caption] GettyBrum chiefs have splashed out on their ground but want a new base[/caption] But why splash out on major improvements to their current home when a move is in the pipeline? The Blues are thinking on their feet. The reasoning is they want to grow their fanbase, as a leap from 29,000-plus crowds to more than 60,000 does not happen overnight. Wagner and his team want fans on board now and that means offering a matchday experience. Birmingham are already working on attracting more eight to 14-year-olds to games as they feel there has been a ‘lost generation’ of fans who were fed up of seeing them tread water under a Far Eastern ownership that appeared detached from supporters. Chief executive Jeremy Dale says they are already geared up to compete in the Championship — and beyond. He told Birmingham Live this week: “From a commercial perspective, the club is doing better than ever before. “If we got promoted, even to the Premier League, if we had the Premier League TV money we wouldn’t be in the bottom few teams in that league. “We’d be just below halfway, from a commercial perspective. “We believe next season, from a commercial point of view, we would be performing within the top five or six in the Championship. “The commercial partners say they can feel the vibe as they walk around the stadium — which is entirely different to what there was before. “They realise it’s not the league you’re in, it’s the club you are.”
IF EVER there was a feel-good reaction to being relegated from the Championship, Birmingham had it last year.
You could have forgiven supporters for venting their anger after a season which saw them use four managers and drop into League One.
But with the stardust of seven-time Super Bowl-winner Tom Brady in the background and a £20million transfer kitty, this was different.
The message from the club now is: “It’s not the league you’re in, it’s the club that you are.”
Even fans who demand instant success could see there was something bigger at work here.
Under American owner Tom Wagner and the Knighthead Capital Management group — who took over in 2023 — things are on the up.
Blues sit four points clear at the top of League One, with two games in hand on their promotion rivals.
And as they host Premier League side Newcastle on Saturday, the gap between the teams may not be as great as you think.
The Tynesiders have plans for a new stadium but so does big-spending Wagner, with a 60,000-seater arena scheduled for 2029 at the earliest.
It could have been a summer of misery after Brum’s relegation but season ticket sales were their best in 13 years, such was the optimism over the club’s rebuild.
CASINO SPECIAL – BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS
Most home games are near sell-outs at the 29,409-capacity St Andrew’s.
Manager Chris Davies was allowed to spend £20m on a squad rebuild, including a new League One transfer record to bring in striker Jay Stansfield from Fulham for an initial £12m rising to £15m.
The wage bill this season is in the region of £20m-£9m more than the next highest in the division — which would see them having a sizeable budget even in the Championship.
But crucially there are no Profit and Sustainability Rules at work here.
Birmingham are subject to SCMP — Salary Cost Management Protocols — and, as a newly-relegated club, they can spend 75 per cent of turnover on player expenditure.
Financial priorities will change with a return to PSR in the Championship.
In the second tier clubs can lose up to £39m over a rolling three-year period before being hit with any punishment.
But with promotion looking likely, Davies will be looking at another large transfer kitty.
That is currently being helped by the generation of huge revenues from partnerships with the likes of Nike, Delta Air Lines and sportswear brand Undefeated.
And on Super Bowl weekend, it cannot be forgotten NFL legend Brady is also listed as a “minority owner” at St Andrew’s.
When Birmingham hosted Hollywood-backed Wrexham earlier this season, Brady brought along pal David Beckham to watch the game.
Yet, despite plans for a new Sports Quarter and super stadium, an incredible £15m was spent on their current home in the summer.
And that was after making repairs to dilapidated areas of the ground.
But why splash out on major improvements to their current home when a move is in the pipeline?
The Blues are thinking on their feet. The reasoning is they want to grow their fanbase, as a leap from 29,000-plus crowds to more than 60,000 does not happen overnight.
Wagner and his team want fans on board now and that means offering a matchday experience.
Birmingham are already working on attracting more eight to 14-year-olds to games as they feel there has been a ‘lost generation’ of fans who were fed up of seeing them tread water under a Far Eastern ownership that appeared detached from supporters.
Chief executive Jeremy Dale says they are already geared up to compete in the Championship — and beyond.
He told Birmingham Live this week: “From a commercial perspective, the club is doing better than ever before.
“If we got promoted, even to the Premier League, if we had the Premier League TV money we wouldn’t be in the bottom few teams in that league.
“We’d be just below halfway, from a commercial perspective.
“We believe next season, from a commercial point of view, we would be performing within the top five or six in the Championship.
“The commercial partners say they can feel the vibe as they walk around the stadium — which is entirely different to what there was before.
“They realise it’s not the league you’re in, it’s the club you are.”
