Birmingham owners and Tom Brady buy land for new stadium

Tom Brady, Tom Wagner and the rest of the ownership group of Birmingham City are pushing through with updating their facilities by buying land for a new stadium. St. Andrew’s is one of the oldest stadiums in England, having opened in 1906. Therefore, Knighthead, the club’s ownership group, purchased a 48-acre site to build a new venue. Initial plans are preparing for a stadium with a capacity of 60,000.

The major hurdle for that is that Birmingham City is threatening relegation to League One. The prospect of dropping into the third tier has major ramifications for the club. For one, the finances would take a hit as broadcast deals would be less valuable in League One. Likewise, interest in the club from a wider audience dwindles in League One compared to the Championship.

Regardless, Knighthead CEO Tom Wagner says his group’s ‘multi-billion-pound’ investment does not change after one season. While avoiding relegation is still the top priority this season, the goals the for group’s investment last year are far more widespread.

“What happens in the next five games is going to have no impact on what we’re pursuing and our vision for the next decade,” Wagner said. “You can’t talk about making a multi-billion-pound investment and worry about the next two fixtures.”

Birmingham City new stadium would revamp facilities

What Wagner can worry about is the lack of attendance at the current venue. St. Andrew’s can host 30,000 fans. Yet, in this difficult season for the club, the stadium has only been about two-thirds full, according to Sky Sports. That does not stop Wagner from planning a stadium that is double that capacity.

“In a perfect world, that’s exactly what we’d shoot for,” said Wagner. “That puts a lot of pressure on us to achieve our objectives and put a product on the pitch for our fans to have that many people showing up.”

While it does include training facilities for the different teams in the…

Source link : https://worldsoccertalk.com/news/birmingham-owners-and-tom-brady-buy-land-for-new-stadium

Author : Kyle Fansler

Publish date : 2024-04-09 19:34:12

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.