Etihad will be blueprint for new Sports Quarter
KNIGHTHEAD’S worst-kept secret is effectively out: Blues’ long-term future lies away from St Andrew’s.
Chairman Tom Wagner hinted as much in his first address to supporters last May, when he agreed to purchase a controlling 45% stake in the club. The noise hasn’t stopped since and now Blues have agreed to purchase the vacant 48-acre site formerly known as Birmingham Wheels.
The Birmingham Post understands the owners intend to create a multisports superstadium. A deal has been agreed as part of the struggling city council’s mass sell-off of land to help fund redundancies and equal-pay claims.
Up to 3,000 jobs will be created by any stadium plans, according to council documents.
It is the next step of the off-field transformation at Blues since Wagner and Knighthead completed their takeover. After essential stadium work was done to St Andrew’s, the American’s stance on leaving the club’s home since 1906 has always been clear.
“I think you have to focus on everything, particularly in a large club like Birmingham,” he said at the FT Live Business of Football summit. “It’s a big city, a big national fanbase, and a big natural catchment area.
“I think you have to focus on revenue, which we believe is the most important component by a wide margin, but it’s not that you can walk in after years of neglect and simply say you’re going to raise ticket prices. I think that’s a disaster waiting to happen.
“It helps when you buy free pints, that’s a nice way to ingratiate yourself, but I think it has to be a lot more than that. You have got to create a matchday experience that is worthy of folks’ time – and we are not competing against other clubs in our city, we are not competing against other clubs in England. We are competing against Netflix, Apple, YouTube and every other form of entertainment you can think about.
“That’s where young people are spending their time and that’s what we have got to try and capture. That means we need to have a product that is deserving of that time and attention and part of that is the quality of play on the pitch, part of it is the story you are telling, a big part of it is the physical infrastructure.
“So from day one of our analysis, we asked what are the opportunities to create a new physical infrastructure for the club that is commensurate with our ambitions and that is very much on the cards.”
The Wheels site always seemed the likeliest location given its close proximity to St Andrew’s and the city centre. The fact it is situated near to Curzon Street Station, where HS2 will operate, is also a significant selling point.
As soon as the idea of developing a ‘Sports Quarter’ in the heart of Birmingham was mentioned, everyone jumped to one conclusion. Blues’ new owners want to replicate Manchester City’s incredible Etihad Campus.
Chief executive Garry Cook was part of drawing up proposals for the Etihad Campus, which comprises a 53,000-seater stadium, training ground, academy facility and all the entertainment space a club could need, during his time working for City. It is undoubtedly the best facility in English football at present.
No-one is saying Blues will be able to better it, but the idea could be transformative for the club and the city it will sit within. Think of the jobs it will create, think of the opportunities it will provide for talent near and far.
Not only will it be an attractive proposition to established performers and brands, it will also appeal to the next generation.
Having an academy facility based in the city centre makes Blues more accessible to children and their parents who might not be able or willing to trek to Wast Hills.
The transport links will have improved no end by the time the Wheels site is fully up and running. HS2 could also be in place, too.
Replicating Manchester City’s on-field success is a pipedream, but Blues’ leadership team are right to use the Premier League champions’ base as a framework for their own. It is high time Birmingham had a sports facility befitting its Second City status.
Leaving St Andrew’s will be a wrench for so many given its history and heritage, but the vast majority will accept it in return for a brighter future. That is what Blues’ owners are promising and they have wasted no time in getting the ball rolling.
We have seen little evidence to back up Knighthead’s ‘Birmingham. On the rise again.’ slogan on the pitch this season. If the final half-a-dozen games of the Championship season don’t go to plan then the American dream might be delayed.
Hopefully it doesn’t come to that because Blues’ fans have suffered enough. The promise of a brand spanking new stadium complex is something to cling onto.
The idea could be transformative for the club and the city it will sit within. Think of the jobs it will create, think of the opportunities.