Birmingham City F.C.

Birmingham City F.C.
Badge of Birmingham City: a line-drawn globe above a football, with ribbon carrying the club name and date of foundation
Full name Birmingham City Football Club
Nickname(s) Blues
Founded 1875 as Small Heath Alliance
Ground St Andrew's
Ground Capacity 29,409[1]
Ground Coordinates 52°28′32″N 1°52′04″W / 52.47556°N 1.86778°W / 52.47556; -1.86778
Owner Trillion Trophy Asia[2]
Manager Harry Redknapp[3]
League Championship
2016–17 Championship, 19th of 24
Website Club website

Birmingham City Football Club (/ˈbɜːrmɪŋəm ˈsɪti/, locally /ˈbɜːrmɪŋɡəm/) is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.[4] The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.

As Small Heath, they played in the Football Alliance before becoming founder members and first ever champions of the Football League Second Division. The most successful period in their history was in the 1950s and early 1960s. They achieved their highest finishing position of sixth in the First Division in the 1955–56 season and reached the 1956 FA Cup Final, progressed to the final of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1960 and 1961, and won their first major trophy, the League Cup, in 1963, beating Aston Villa 3–1 on aggregate. They won the latter competition for the second time in 2011. They have played in the top tier of English football for around half of their history:[5] the longest period spent outside the top division, between 1986 and 2002, included two brief spells in the third tier of the English League, during which time they twice won the Football League Trophy.

St Andrew's has been their home ground since 1906. They have a long-standing and fierce rivalry with Aston Villa, their nearest neighbours, with whom they play the Second City derby. The club's nickname is Blues, after the colour of their kit, and their fans are known as Bluenoses.

History

Small Heath F.C., champions of the inaugural Football League Second Division in 1892–93

Birmingham City were founded as Small Heath Alliance in 1875, and from 1877 played their home games at Muntz Street. The club turned professional in 1885,[6] and three years later became the first football club to become a limited company with a board of directors,[7] under the name of Small Heath F.C. Ltd.[8] From the 1889–90 season they played in the Football Alliance, which ran alongside the Football League. In 1892, Small Heath, along with the other Alliance teams, were invited to join the newly formed Football League Second Division. They finished as champions, but failed to win promotion via the test match system; the following season promotion to the First Division was secured after a second-place finish and test match victory over Darwen.[9] The club adopted the name Birmingham Football Club in 1905, and moved into their new home, St Andrew's Ground, the following year.[10] Matters on the field failed to live up to their surroundings. Birmingham were relegated in 1908, obliged to apply for re-election two years later, and remained in the Second Division until after the First World War.[9]

Frank Womack's captaincy and the creativity of Scottish international playmaker Johnny Crosbie contributed much to Birmingham winning their second Division Two title in 1920–21.[11] Womack went on to make 515 appearances, a club record for an outfielder, over a twenty-year career.[12] 1920 also saw the debut of the 19-year-old Joe Bradford, who went on to score a club record 267 goals in 445 games, and won 12 caps for England.[13] In 1931, manager Leslie Knighton led the club to their first FA Cup Final, which they lost 2–1 to Second Division club West Bromwich Albion. Though Birmingham remained in the top flight for 18 seasons, they struggled in the league, with much reliance placed on England goalkeeper Harry Hibbs to make up for the lack of goals, Bradford excepted, at the other end.[14] They were finally relegated in 1939, the last full season before the Football League was abandoned for the duration of the Second World War.

The name Birmingham City F.C. was adopted in 1943.[4] Under Harry Storer, appointed manager in 1945, the club won the Football League South wartime league and reached the semifinal of the first post-war FA Cup. Two years later they won their third Second Division title, conceding only 24 goals in the 42-game season.[15] Storer's successor Bob Brocklebank, though unable to stave off relegation in 1950, brought in players who made a major contribution to the club's successes of the next decade.[16] When Arthur Turner took over as manager in November 1954, he made them play closer to their potential, and a 5–1 win on the last day of the 1954–55 season confirmed them as champions.[17] In their first season back in the First Division, Birmingham achieved their highest league finish of sixth place. They also reached the FA Cup final, losing 3–1 to Manchester City in the game notable for City's goalkeeper Bert Trautmann playing the last 20 minutes with a broken bone in his neck. The following season the club lost in the FA Cup semifinal for the third time since the war, this time beaten 2–0 by Manchester United's "Busby Babes".[17]

Birmingham became the first English club side to take part in European competition when they played their first group game in the inaugural Inter-Cities Fairs Cup competition on 15 May 1956;[18][19][20] they went on to reach the semifinal where they drew 4–4 on aggregate with Barcelona, losing the replay 2–1. They were also the first English club side to reach a European final, losing 4–1 on aggregate to Barcelona in the 1960 Fairs Cup final and 4–2 to A.S. Roma the following year.[20] In the 1961 semifinal they beat Internazionale home and away; no other English club won a competitive game in the San Siro until Arsenal managed it more than 40 years later.[21] Gil Merrick's side saved their best form for cup competitions. Though opponents in the 1963 League Cup final, local rivals Aston Villa, were pre-match favourites, Birmingham raised their game and won 3–1 on aggregate to lift their first major trophy.[22] In 1965, after ten years in the top flight, they returned to the Second Division.

Businessman Clifford Coombs took over as chairman in 1965, luring Stan Cullis out of retirement to manage the club.[23] Cullis's team played attractive football which took them to the semifinals of the League Cup in 1967 and the FA Cup in 1968, but league football needed a different approach.[24] Successor Freddie Goodwin produced a team playing skilful, aggressive football that won promotion as well as reaching an FA Cup semifinal.[25] Two years later, the club raised money by selling Bob Latchford to Everton for a British record fee of £350,000, but without his goals the team struggled.[26] Sir Alf Ramsey briefly managed the club before Jim Smith took over in 1978. With relegation a certainty, the club sold Trevor Francis to Nottingham Forest, making him the first player transferred for a fee of £1 million;[27] Francis had scored a total of 133 goals in 329 appearances over his nine years at Birmingham.[28] Smith took Birmingham straight back to the First Division, but a poor start to the 1981–82 season saw him replaced by Ron Saunders, who had just resigned from league champions Aston Villa. Saunders' team struggled to score goals and in 1984 they were relegated.[29] They bounced back up, but the last home game of the 1984–85 promotion season, against Leeds United, was marred by rioting, culminating in the death of a boy when a wall collapsed on him. This was on the same day as the Bradford City stadium fire, and the events at St Andrew's formed part of the remit of Mr Justice Popplewell's inquiry into safety at sports grounds.[30] The club lacked stability both on and off the field. Saunders quit after FA Cup defeat to non-League team Altrincham, staff were laid off, the training ground was sold, and by 1989 Birmingham were in the Third Division for the first time in their history.[31]

In April 1989 the Kumar brothers, owners of a clothing chain, bought the club.[31] A rapid turnover of managers, the absence of promised investment, and a threatened mass refusal of players to renew contracts was relieved only by a victorious trip to Wembley in the Associate Members Cup.[32] Terry Cooper delivered promotion, but the collapse of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) put the Kumars' businesses into receivership; in November 1992 BCCI's liquidator put up for sale their 84% holding in the football club.[33] The club continued in administration for four months, until publisher David Sullivan bought it for £700,000,[34] installed the then 23-year-old Karren Brady as managing director and allowed Cooper money for signings. On the last day of the season, the team avoided relegation back to the third tier,[35] but after a poor start to the 1993–94 season Cooper was replaced by Barry Fry. The change did not prevent relegation, but Fry's first full season brought promotion back to the second tier as champions, and victory in the Football League Trophy at Wembley, beating Carlisle United with a Paul Tait golden goal,[36] completed the "lower-league Double". After one more year, Fry was sacked to make way for the return of Trevor Francis.[37]

Francis introduced players with top-level experience such as Manchester United skipper Steve Bruce. In his second season the club narrowly missed out on a play-off position, followed by three years of play-off semifinal defeats.[6] They also reached the 2001 League Cup final against Liverpool at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. Birmingham equalised in the last minute of normal time, but the match went to a penalty shootout which Liverpool won.[38] By October 2001, lack of progress had made Francis's position untenable. After a 6–0 League Cup defeat to Manchester City, he left by mutual consent,[39] replaced two months later by Steve Bruce.[40] Bruce shook up a stale team, taking them from mid-table into the play-offs where they beat Norwich City on penalties to win promotion to the Premier League.[41]

Motivated by the inspirational Christophe Dugarry,[42] Birmingham's first top-flight season for 16 years finished in mid-table. Loan signing Mikael Forssell's 17 league goals helped Birmingham to a top-half finish in 2003–04, though performances and results tailed off badly towards the end of the season. First-team coach Mark Bowen was sacked and replaced by Eric Black,[43] international players were signed, but an injury to Forssell left the 2004–05 team struggling for goals. More transfer window loan signings ensured another mid-table finish. Only two months later, chairman David Gold said it was time to "start talking about being as good as anyone outside the top three or four" with "the best squad of players for 25 years".[44] Injuries, lack of form, and a lack of investment during the transfer window saw them relegated before the last game of a season whose lowlight was a 0–7 FA Cup defeat to Liverpool.[45] Jermaine Pennant and Emile Heskey left for record fees,[46][47] many more were released,[48] but Bruce retained the confidence of the board.[49] His amended recruitment strategy, combining young "hungry" players with free-transfer experience and shrewd exploitation of the loan market, brought automatic promotion at the end of a season which had included calls for his head.[50]

In July 2007, Hong Kong-based businessman Carson Yeung bought 29.9% of shares in the club, making him the biggest single shareholder, with a view to taking full control in the future.[51] Uncertain as to his future under possible new owners, Bruce left in mid-season to become manager of Premier League rivals Wigan Athletic.[52] His successor, Scotland national team manager Alex McLeish,[53] was unable to stave off relegation,[54] but achieved promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt,[55] and a ninth-place finish, their best for 51 years, the following season.[56] In 2011, they combined a second victory in the League Cup, defeating favourites Arsenal 2–1 with goals from Nikola Žigić and Obafemi Martins and securing qualification for the Europa League,[57] with relegation back to the second tier.[58] McLeish resigned in June 2011 to join Aston Villa.[59] Successor Chris Hughton narrowly failed to reach the knockout rounds of the Europa League and the playoff final before, with the club in financial turmoil and under a transfer embargo, leaving for Norwich City in June 2012.[60] Under Lee Clark, Birmingham twice retained their divisional status, albeit through Paul Caddis's 93rd-minute goal in the last match of 2013–14 to avoid relegation on goal difference,[61] but continued poor form saw him sacked in October 2014.[62] Gary Rowett stabilised the team and led them to two tenth-place finishes before being controversially dismissed by new owners Trillion Trophy Asia in favour of the "pedigree" of Gianfranco Zola, who would aid the club's "strategic, long-term view" to take the club in a new direction.[63] A spell of two wins in 24 matches left Birmingham needing two wins from the last three games to stay up, which they achieved under the managership of Harry Redknapp.[64]

Colours and badge

Small Heath Alliance original kit

The Small Heath Alliance members decided among themselves that their colours would be blue; in the early days, they wore whatever blue shirt they had.[65] Their first uniform kit was a dark blue shirt with a white sash and white shorts.[66] Several variations on a blue theme were tried; the one that stuck was the royal blue shirt with a white "V", adopted during the First World War and retained until the late 1920s. Though the design changed, the royal blue remained. In 1971 they adopted the "penguin" strip – royal blue with a broad white central front panel – which lasted five years.[67] Since then they have generally worn plain, nominally royal blue shirts, though the actual shade used has varied. Shorts have been either blue or white, and socks usually blue, white or a combination. White, yellow, red and black, on their own or in combination, have been the most frequently used colours for the away kit.[66][68]

There have been aberrations. The 1992 kit, sponsored by Triton Showers, was made of a blue material covered with multicoloured splashes which resembled a shower curtain.[69][70] Birmingham have only worn stripes on their home shirt once; in 1999 they wore a blue shirt with a front central panel in narrow blue and white stripes,[68] a design similar to the Tesco supermarket carrier bag of the time.

When the club changed their name from Small Heath to Birmingham in 1905 they adopted the city's coat of arms as their crest, although this was not always worn on the shirts. The 1970s "penguin" shirt carried the letters "BCFC" intertwined at the centre of the chest. The Sports Argus newspaper ran a competition in 1972 to design a new badge for the club. The winning entry, a line-drawn globe and ball, with ribbon carrying the club name and date of foundation, in plain blue and white,[71] was adopted by the club but not worn on playing shirts until 1976. An experiment was made in the early 1990s with colouring in the globe and ball, but the club soon reverted to the plain version.[72]

For the 2017–18 season, the home kit consists of a blue shirt with white trim at the neck and white stripes down the side seams, white shorts with blue trim and blue stripes down the side seams, and blue socks with white trim at the turnover. The away kit reverses the colours of the home kit. The kits are supplied by Adidas and bear the logo of online bookmaker 888sport, the club's main sponsor.[73]

Sponsors' names or logos have appeared on the shirts since 1982. Tables of shirt sponsors and kit suppliers appear below.[72]

Stadiums

Small Heath Alliance played their first home games on waste ground off Arthur Street, Bordesley Green. As interest grew, they moved to a fenced-off field in Ladypool Road, Sparkbrook, where admission could be charged. A year later, they moved again, to a field adjoining Muntz Street, Small Heath, near the main Coventry Road, with a capacity of about 10,000. The Muntz Street ground was adequate for 1880s friendly matches, and the capacity was gradually raised to around 30,000, but when several thousand spectators scaled walls and broke down turnstiles to get into a First Division match against Aston Villa, it became clear that it could no longer cope with the demand.[74]

Director Harry Morris identified a site for a new ground in Bordesley Green, some three-quarters of a mile (1 km) from Muntz Street towards the city centre. The site was where a brickworks once operated; the land sloped steeply down to stagnant pools, yet the stadium was constructed in under twelve months from land clearance to opening ceremony on Boxing Day 1906. Heavy snow nearly prevented the opening; volunteers had to clear pitch and terraces before the match, a goalless draw against Middlesbrough, could go ahead.[74] The ground is reputed to have been cursed by gypsies evicted from the site;[75] although gypsies are known to have camped nearby,[76] there is no contemporary evidence for their eviction by the club.

Average and peak league attendances at St Andrew's

The original capacity of St Andrew's was reported as 75,000, with 4,000 seats in the Main Stand and space for 22,000 under cover.[74] By 1938 the official capacity was 68,000, and February 1939 saw the attendance record set at the fifth round FA Cup tie against Everton, variously recorded as 66,844 or 67,341.[upper-alpha 1] On the outbreak of the Second World War, the Chief Constable ordered the ground's closure because of the danger from air raids; it was the only ground to be thus closed, and was only re-opened after the matter was raised in Parliament. It was badly damaged during the Birmingham Blitz: the Railway End and the Kop as a result of bombing, while the Main Stand burnt down when a fireman mistook petrol for water.[74]

Main Stand, St Andrew's, 2005

The replacement Main Stand used a propped cantilever roof design, which meant fewer pillars to block spectators' view of the pitch. Floodlights were installed in 1956, and officially switched on for a friendly match against Borussia Dortmund in 1957.[80] By the early 1960s a stand had been built at the Railway End to the same design as the Main Stand, roofs had been put on the Kop and Tilton Road End, and the ground capacity was down to about 55,000.[80]

Resulting from the 1986 Popplewell Report into the safety of sports grounds and the later Taylor Report, the capacity of St Andrew's was set at 28,235 for safety reasons,[30][80] but it was accepted that the stadium had to be brought up to modern all-seated standards. After the last home game of the 1993–94 season, the Kop and Tilton Road terraces were demolished – fans took home a significant proportion as souvenirs – to be replaced at the start of the new season by a 7,000-seat Tilton Road Stand, continuing round the corner into the 9,500-seat Kop which opened two months later.[74] The 8,000-seat Railway Stand followed in 1999;[81] ten years later, this was renamed the Gil Merrick Stand, in honour of the club's appearance record-holder and former manager[82] – but the Main Stand has still to be modernised. In 2017, the club website listed the stadium capacity as 29,409.[1]

In 2004 a proposal was put forward to build a "sports village" comprising a new 55,000 capacity stadium for the club, to be known as the City of Birmingham Stadium, other sports and leisure facilities, and a super casino. The project would be jointly financed by Birmingham City Council, Birmingham City F.C. (via the proceeds of the sale of St Andrew's) and the casino group Las Vegas Sands. The feasibility of the plan depended on the government issuing a licence for a super casino, and Birmingham being chosen as the venue,[83] but this did not happen. The club have planning permission to redevelop the Main Stand,[84] but club and council have continued to seek alternative sources of funding for the City of Birmingham Stadium project.[85]

In 2013, the Birmingham City Supporters' Trust's application for listing St Andrew's as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) – a building or other land whose main use "furthers the social wellbeing or social interests of the local community" and where it is realistic to believe it could do so in the future.[86] – under the Localism Act 2011 was approved by Birmingham City Council.[87] This requires any proposed sale to be notified to the Council, and provides for a six-month moratorium on that sale to allow the Trust and other community groups to submit their own bid.[87]

Supporters

Birmingham fans consider their main rivals to be Aston Villa, their nearest neighbours geographically, with whom they contest the Second City derby. Lesser rivalries exist with fellow West Midlands clubs Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion. According to a 2003 Football Fans Census survey, Aston Villa fans thought of Birmingham City as their main rivals, though this was not always the case.[88]

Birmingham City mascot Beau Brummie

Birmingham's supporters are generally referred to as "Bluenoses" in the media and by the fans themselves; the name is also used in a derogatory manner by fans of other clubs.[88][89] A piece of public sculpture in the form of a ten-times-life-size head lying on a mound near the St Andrew's ground, Ondré Nowakowski's Sleeping Iron Giant, has been repeatedly defaced with blue paint on its nose.[90] Between 1994 and 1997 the club mascot took the form of a blue nose,[91] though it is now a dog called Beau Brummie, a play on the name Beau Brummell and Brummie, the slang word for a person from Birmingham.

A number of supporters' clubs are affiliated to the football club, both in England and abroad.[92] An action group was formed in 1991 to protest against chairman Samesh Kumar,[32] the club blamed an internet petition for the collapse of the purchase of player Lee Bowyer in 2005,[93] and antipathy towards the board provoked hostile chanting and a pitch invasion after the last match of the 2007–08 season,[94] but when the club was in financial difficulties, supporters contributed to schemes which funded the purchase of players Brian Roberts in 1984[95] and Paul Peschisolido in 1992.[32] A supporters' trust was formed under the auspices of Supporters Direct in 2012.[96]

There have been several fanzines published by supporters. Made in Brum, first issued in 2000, was the only one regularly on sale in 2013.[97] The Zulu began some years earlier and ran for at least 16 seasons.[98] The hooligan firm associated with the club, the Zulus, were unusual in that they had multi-racial membership at a time when many such firms had associations with racist or right-wing groups.[99][100]

Visiting Birmingham fans during the club's first away appearance in group stage of the UEFA Europa League in 2011

The fans' anthem,[101] an adaptation of Harry Lauder's Keep right on to the end of the road,[102] was adopted during the 1956 FA Cup campaign. The Times' football correspondent described in his Cup Final preview how

the Birmingham clans swept their side along to Wembley – the first side ever to reach a final without once playing at home – on the wings of the song "Keep right on to the end of the road".[103]

Player Alex Govan is credited with popularising the song, by singing it on the coach on the way to the quarter final[104] and when he revealed in an interview that it was his favourite.

In the build-up to the 1956 FA Cup semi-final with Sunderland I was interviewed by the press and happened to let slip that my favourite song was Harry Lauder's old music hall number "Keep Right on to the End of the Road". I thought no more about it, but when the third goal went in at Hillsborough the Blues fans all started singing it. It was the proudest moment of my life.[105]

Ownership

Small Heath F.C. became a limited company in 1888; its first share issue was to the value of £650.[106] The board was made up of local businessmen and dignitaries until 1965, when the club was sold to Clifford Coombs.[107] By the mid-1980s the club was in financial trouble. Control passed from the Coombs family to former Walsall F.C. chairman Ken Wheldon, who cut costs, made redundancies, and sold off assets, including the club's training ground. Still unable to make the club pay, Wheldon sold it to the Kumar brothers, owners of a clothing chain.[31] Debt was still increasing when matters came to a head; the collapse of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) put the Kumars' businesses into receivership. The club continued in administration for four months until Sport Newspapers' proprietor David Sullivan bought the Kumars' 84% holding for £700,000 from BCCI's liquidator in March 1993.[33][34] Birmingham City plc, of which the football club was a wholly owned subsidiary, was floated on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in 1997 with an issue of 15 million new shares,[108] raising £7.5 million of new investment.[109] It made a pre-tax profit of £4.3M in the year ending 31 August 2008.[110]

In July 2007, Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung, via the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (SEHK)-listed company Grandtop International Holdings Limited (GIH), bought 29.9% of the plc from its directors. Although his intention to take full control of the club initially came to nothing.[111] GIH completed the purchase in October 2009 at a total cost of £81.5M, re-registered the club as a private company, and renamed the holding company Birmingham International Holdings (BIH).[112][113][114]

Trading in BIH shares was suspended in June 2011 after Yeung's arrest on charges of money-laundering.[115] Publication of financial results was repeatedly delayed,[116] which led the Football League to impose a transfer embargo,[117] and offers for the club were entertained from 2012 onwards.[118] After Yeung resigned his positions with both club and company in early 2014, share trading resumed,[119] and following his conviction,[120] efforts intensified to dispose of the club, which had to be done piecemeal in order to retain BIH's share listing.[121]

Going into 2015, the Football League made public their concerns over Yeung's attempts to impose his choice of directors on the BIHL board despite his conviction disqualifying him from exerting influence over a club.[122] Relationships became increasingly factional, as illustrated by the failure of three directors, including the club's de facto chief executive Panos Pavlakis, to gain re-election, followed the next day by their reinstatement.[123] On 17 February, the board voluntarily appointed receivers from accountants Ernst & Young to take over management of the company. Their statement stressed that no winding-up petition had been issued and the company was not in liquidation.[124][125]

In June 2015, the receivers granted a two-year exclusivity period to their preferred bidder, the British Virgin Islands-registered investment vehicle Trillion Trophy Asia (TTA), wholly owned by Chinese businessman Paul Suen Cho Hung. After striking deals with the previous major shareholders such that legal action against them would be dropped in return for their agreement not to obstruct any transfer of ownership, the receivers released a document in June 2016 setting out a timescale for the company restructure, share relisting and takeover, to be completed by the end of October. It confirmed that Suen would hold 60.78% of BIH shares and the Yeung faction no more than 14%, and that the company would not be sold on within two years.[126] The process completed on 17 October, leaving TTA owning 50.64% of BIH's share capital, a level of ownership that required them to make an offer for the remainder.[2]

Honours

Trophy cabinet with the Carling Cup trophy

Birmingham City's honours include the following:[127]

Second Division / Division One / The Championship (level 2)

Third Division / Division Two (level 3)

FA Cup

Football League Cup

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup

Associate Members Cup / Football League Trophy

Birmingham Senior Cup

In pre-league days, County Cups were second only to the FA Cup in importance as first-team competitions. Small Heath first entered the Birmingham Senior Cup in 1878–79 – ten years before the foundation of the Football League – and won for the first time in 1905, defeating West Bromwich Albion 7–2 in the final. Its importance declined with the increase in League fixtures, and from 1905–06 onwards, Birmingham fielded teams containing reserve-team players.[128][129]

Football League South (wartime)

Preparatory to the Football League resuming in 1946–47, the First and Second Division clubs from the last pre-war season were divided geographically between the Leagues North and South for 1945–46. Going into the last day of the season, Aston Villa were top of League South but had finished their programme two points (one win) ahead of the chasers but with a worse goal average. Charlton Athletic were second, above Birmingham by 0.002 of a goal.[130] While Charlton could only draw at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham won away at Luton Town, so claimed the title by 0.3 of a goal.[131][132]

Statistics and records

Chart of English Football League performance of Birmingham City F.C. since the 1892–93 season

Frank Womack holds the record for Birmingham league appearances, having played 491 matches between 1908 and 1928, closely followed by Gil Merrick with 485 between 1946 and 1959. If all senior competitions are included, Merrick has 551, less closely followed by Womack's 515 which is the record for an outfield player.[133] The player who won most international caps while at the club is Maik Taylor with 58 for Northern Ireland.[134]

The goalscoring record is held by Joe Bradford, with 249 league goals, 267 altogether, scored between 1920 and 1935; no other player comes close. Walter Abbott holds the records for the most goals scored in a season, in 1898–99, with 34 league goals in the Second Division and 42 goals in total.[46]

The club's widest victory margin in the league was 12–0, a scoreline which they achieved once in the Football Alliance, against Nottingham Forest in 1899, and twice in the Second Division, against Walsall Town Swifts in 1892 and Doncaster Rovers in 1903. They have lost a league match by an eight-goal margin on eight occasions: twice in the Football Alliance and five times in the First Division, all away from home,[135] and once at home, beaten 8–0 by AFC Bournemouth in the Championship in 2014.[136] Their record FA Cup win was 10–0 against Druids in the fourth qualifying round of the 1899 competition;[137] their record FA Cup defeat was 7–0 at home to Liverpool in the 2006 quarter final.[136]

Birmingham's home attendance record was set at the fifth-round FA Cup tie against Everton on 11 February 1939. It is variously recorded as 66,844 or 67,341.[upper-alpha 1] According to the club website, the highest transfer fee received for a Birmingham player is £6.5 million from Liverpool for Jermaine Pennant in August 2006, while the most expensive player bought was Emile Heskey, who joined from Liverpool in May 2004 for a fee of £6.25m.[46]

Players

Current squad

Grey-haired man wearing blue and white sports clothing
Club captain Paul Robinson

Where a player has not declared an international allegiance, nation is determined by place of birth. Squad correct as of 8 August 2017.[138][139]

No. Position Player Nation
2 Defender Nsue, EmilioEmilio Nsue  Equatorial Guinea
3 Defender Grounds, JonathanJonathan Grounds  England
4 Defender Roberts, MarcMarc Roberts  England
5 Defender Shotton, RyanRyan Shotton  England
6 Midfielder Kieftenbeld, MaikelMaikel Kieftenbeld  Netherlands
7 Midfielder Tesche, RobertRobert Tesche  Germany
8 Midfielder Gardner, CraigCraig Gardner  England
9 Forward Donaldson, ClaytonClayton Donaldson  Jamaica
10 Forward Jutkiewicz, LukasLukas Jutkiewicz  England
13 Goalkeeper Stockdale, DavidDavid Stockdale  England
14 Forward Adams, CheChe Adams  England
17 Midfielder N'Doye, CheikhCheikh N'Doye  Senegal
19 Midfielder Maghoma, JacquesJacques Maghoma  Democratic Republic of the Congo
23 Midfielder Cotterill, DavidDavid Cotterill  Wales
25 Defender Dacres-Cogley, JoshJosh Dacres-Cogley  England
26 Midfielder Davis, DavidDavid Davis  England
28 Defender Morrison, MichaelMichael Morrison  England
29 Goalkeeper Kuszczak, TomaszTomasz Kuszczak  Poland
30 Defender Okeeffe, CoreyCorey O'Keeffe  Ireland
33 Defender Keita, CheickCheick Keita  Mali
40 Defender Robinson, PaulPaul Robinson (club captain[139])  England
44 Forward Brock-Madsen, NicolaiNicolai Brock-Madsen  Denmark
45 Defender Harding, WesWes Harding  England
50 Midfielder Gleeson, StephenStephen Gleeson  Ireland

Out on loan

Where a player has not declared an international allegiance, nation is determined by place of birth.

No. Position Player Nation
— Midfielder Fabbrini, DiegoDiego Fabbrini (at Real Oviedo until 30 June 2018[140])  Italy
— Midfielder Shinnie, AndrewAndrew Shinnie (at Luton Town for the 2017–18 season[141])  Scotland
— Midfielder Solomon-Otabor, VivViv Solomon-Otabor (at Blackpool until 6 January 2018[142])  England
— Forward Stewart, GregGreg Stewart (at Aberdeen for the 2017–18 season[143])  Scotland
— Goalkeeper Trueman, ConnalConnal Trueman (at Solihull Moors until 2 January 2018[144])  England

Reserves and Academy

Birmingham City Ladies

Birmingham City Ladies Football Club was formed in 1968. The first team worked their way through the leagues until promoted to the FA Women's Premier League in 2002. After Birmingham City F.C. withdrew financial support in 2005, the club were only able to continue because of a personal donation. They re-affiliated with Birmingham City in 2010, were founder members of the FA WSL the following year, and won the FA Women's Cup in 2012.[145][146][147]

Club officials

Owner: Trillion Trophy Asia[2]

Directors:

As of 26 June 2017[148]
Current manager Harry Redknapp

Coaching staff:

As of 28 June 2017

Notable managers

Gil Merrick was the first Birmingham manager to win a major trophy, the League Cup in 1963. Merrick also led the club to the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final in 1961, following Pat Beasley who had done the same in 1960.[153] Leslie Knighton took the club to the final of the FA Cup in 1931;[14] Arthur Turner did likewise in 1956, as well as taking charge of the club's highest league finish, sixth place in the 1955–56 First Division.[17] Birmingham reached the 2001 Football League Cup Final under Trevor Francis,[38] whose successor as permanent manager, Steve Bruce, twice achieved promotion to the Premier League.[41][50] Birmingham won the League Cup for the second time under Alex McLeish in 2011.[57] The 1966 World Cup-winning manager, Sir Alf Ramsey, took charge of the club briefly in 1977.[153]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Some sources give the record attendance as 66,844: these include the records page of Birmingham City F.C.'s website[46] and Rothman's Football Yearbook.[77] Others, including the history page of Birmingham City F.C.'s website,[6] Matthews' Encyclopedia,[78] and The Times newspaper from the Monday following the match,[79] say 67,341.

References

General

Specific

  1. 1 2 "New to St. Andrew's?". Birmingham City F.C. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "Birmingham International Holdings Limited (BIHL) has resumed trading". Birmingham City F.C. 17 October 2016. Archived from the original on 17 October 2016. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
    "Completion of Restructuring of Birmingham International Holdings Limited..." (PDF). Birmingham City F.C. 17 October 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2017. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Harry Redknapp signs one-year deal to stay on as Birmingham City manager". BBC Sport. 12 May 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  4. 1 2 Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'Club name', p. 55. "City was added to Birmingham (to make Birmingham City Football Club) in the summer of 1943 (and not 1945 as previously thought). The official Blues home programmes for the 1943–44 season clearly show Birmingham City Football Club on the front cover."
  5. ↑ "Birmingham City". Football Facts and Figures. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 "BCFC club history". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 29 May 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  7. ↑ Williams, John & Neatrour, Sam (March 2002). "Fact Sheet 10: The 'New' Football Economics" (PDF). Sir Norman Chester Centre for Football Research, University of Leicester. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  8. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 8.
  9. 1 2 "Small Heath". Football Club History Database (FCHD). Richard Rundle. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  10. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 12–13.
  11. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 14.
  12. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 135–36.
  13. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 74.
  14. 1 2 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 15–17.
  15. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 22–23.
  16. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 61.
  17. 1 2 3 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 27–29.
  18. ↑ Radnedge, Keir (1998). "Inter-Cities Fairs/UEFA Cup". The Complete Encyclopedia of Football. Carlton Books. p. 200. ISBN 978-1-85833-979-5. In April [1955], 12 representatives from European trade fair cities from 10 countries met in Basle to lay down the rules. They decided each city should be represented by a club or a city select team, or both – as long as no more than two teams competed simultaneously from any one city.
  19. ↑ Goodyear, David & Matthews, Tony (1988). Aston Villa A Complete Record 1875–1988. Derby: Breedon Books. ISBN 0-907969-37-2. At this time there seemed a general lack of ambition at Villa Park. The club were slow to install floodlights, they turned down the chance of combining with Blues to field a 'Birmingham' team for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup...
  20. 1 2 Ross, James M. (8 September 2016). "European Cups Archive". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF). Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  21. ↑ Moore, Chris (27 November 2003). "Harris beats Henry". The Sun. London. Archived from the original on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2008.
  22. ↑ Jawad, Hyder (March 2005). Strange Magic. Birmingham City v Aston Villa. Birmingham Post. pp. 27–28. It is a mystery how Birmingham won but they did produce perhaps their most impressive display of the season to win the first leg 3–1 ... Birmingham served up a treat of attacking football ... controlling the game with such assurance that their supporters must have wondered why the team had performed so badly in the First Division.
  23. ↑ Holden, Jim (2000). Stan Cullis: The Iron Manager. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 161. ISBN 1-85983-211-3. He had been out of the game for less than a year when Clifford Coombs, the chairman of Birmingham City, began to make a serious approach to secure the Iron Manager. The pair were friends and St Andrew's was close enough to Wolverhampton that Cullis would not necessarily have to move house or area to take up the position.
  24. ↑ "'Taffy' Coombs... The man who rebuilt the Blues". GOAL magazine. 19 August 1972. p. 27.
  25. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 37–38, 63.
  26. ↑ Corbett, James (5 March 2006). "Bob Latchford". Observer Sport Monthly. London. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
    Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 38–39, 209–15.
  27. ↑ "The European Cup Team 1979". Nottingham Forest F.C. Archived from the original on 7 August 2012.
  28. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 88.
  29. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 42, 219.
  30. 1 2 Webster, Philip (25 July 1985). "Ban on visiting fans urged in judge's football safety report". The Times. London. Retrieved 10 October 2007 – via NewsBank. The Birmingham riot in which more than 500 were injured and in which a boy of 15 died when a wall collapsed 'more resembled the battle of Agincourt than a football match.'
  31. 1 2 3 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 44–46.
  32. 1 2 3 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 48–49.
  33. 1 2 Goodbody, John (7 November 1992). "Receivers put football club up for sale". The Times. London. Retrieved 10 October 2007 – via NewsBank.
  34. 1 2 "Sullivan takes control". The Times. London. 6 March 1993. Retrieved 4 January 2008 – via NewsBank.
  35. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 48–52.
  36. ↑ "The highs and lows of Carlisle United". BBC. Archived from the original on 22 October 2004.
  37. ↑ Shaw, Phil (8 May 1996). "Francis fancied as Fry is sacked". The Independent. London. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  38. 1 2 "Worthington Cup final Clockwatch". BBC Sport. 25 February 2001. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
  39. ↑ "Francis leaves Blues". BBC Sport. 15 October 2001. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
  40. ↑ "Birmingham unveil Bruce". BBC Sport. 12 December 2001. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  41. 1 2 May, John (12 May 2002). "Cool Carter in blue heaven". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
  42. ↑ Haylett, Trevor (27 April 2003). "Slow-starter Dugarry makes up for lost time". The Sunday Telegraph. London. Retrieved 6 September 2009. Those who rubbish the notion that one player can transform a team and inspire 10 others to exciting deeds should consider the case of Christophe Dugarry. It is difficult to imagine Birmingham easing their way to safety quite so comfortably without him.
  43. ↑ Tattum, Colin (23 June 2004). "Bowen out in Blues shake up". Evening Mail. Birmingham. Archived from the original on 16 April 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
  44. ↑ Scott, Ged (7 July 2005). "Golden time to talk up Blues". Birmingham Post. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  45. ↑ Shaw, Phil (1 May 2006). "Birmingham City 0 Newcastle United 0: 'Shattered' Bruce to consider future at Birmingham". The Independent. London. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  46. 1 2 3 4 "Birmingham City Football Club Records". Birmingham City F.C. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012.
  47. ↑ "Wigan seal £5.5m move for Heskey". BBC Sport. 7 July 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  48. ↑ "Birmingham release seven players". BBC Sport. 9 May 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  49. ↑ "Bruce stays on as Birmingham boss". BBC Sport. 19 May 2006. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  50. 1 2 Jawad, Hyder (2 May 2007). "Never say die". Birmingham Post. Retrieved 27 October 2013 – via NewsBank.
  51. ↑ "Yeung takes stake in Birmingham". BBC Sport. 16 July 2007. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  52. ↑ "Bruce leaves Birmingham for Wigan". BBC Sport. 27 October 2013. Retrieved 19 November 2007.
  53. ↑ "Birmingham unveil McLeish as boss". BBC Sport. 28 November 2007. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  54. ↑ McKenzie, Andrew (11 May 2008). "Birmingham 4–1 Blackburn". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 May 2008.
  55. ↑ Fletcher, Paul (3 May 2009). "Birmingham clinch top-flight spot". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  56. ↑ Roopanarine, Les (9 May 2010). "Bolton 2–1 Birmingham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
  57. 1 2 "Carling Cup final: McLeish hails 'greatest achievement'". BBC Sport. 27 February 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  58. ↑ "Alex McLeish 'devastated' by Birmingham City relegation". BBC Sport. 22 May 2011. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
  59. ↑ "Aston Villa appoint Alex McLeish as manager". BBC Sport. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  60. ↑ "Chris Hughton appointed as new Norwich City manager". BBC Sport. 7 June 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  61. ↑ Hart, Simon (3 May 2014). "Bolton 2 Birmingham 2 match report: Paul Caddis gets Birmingham out of jail". The Independent. London. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  62. ↑ "Gary Rowett: Birmingham City appoint Burton boss as manager". BBC Sport. 27 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
  63. ↑ de Menezes, Jack (14 December 2016). "Birmingham City: Gianfranco Zola confirmed as manager just hours afte Gary Rowett is sacked". The Independent. London. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  64. ↑ James, Stuart (6 May 2017). "Fallen giants: how Nottingham Forest, Birmingham and Blackburn fell so far". The Observer. London. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
    James, Stuart (7 May 2017). "Redknapp completes Birmingham's great escape with win at Bristol City". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  65. ↑ Lewis, p. 25.
  66. 1 2 Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'Colours', pp. 56–57.
  67. ↑ "Influential and Classic Football Kits". Historical Football Kits. Dave Moor. Retrieved 23 November 2008.
  68. 1 2 "Birmingham City" (PNG). Classic Kits. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  69. ↑ "Room 101 The Worst Kits Ever". Historical Football Kits. Dave Moor. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  70. ↑ Lewis, p. 31.
  71. ↑ Lewis, pp. 27–29.
  72. 1 2 "Birmingham City". Historical Football Kits. Dave Moor. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  73. ↑ "2017/18 adidas Home Kit Revealed!". Birmingham City F.C. 3 July 2017. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
    "The new 2017/18 adidas away kit is now on sale". Birmingham City F.C. 15 June 2017. Archived from the original on 2 July 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  74. 1 2 3 4 5 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 57–59.
  75. ↑ Smith, Martin (26 December 2006). "Birmingham hope curse has run course". Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  76. ↑ Marsden, Bob (March 1987). A.B.C. of Small Heath and Bordesley Green Past and Present. Small Heath Local History Society. p. 44. St. Andrew's [Church] was erected in 1846, the fifth and last to be built by the Church Building Society. It was an unsuitable site, and for many years after its building, the only dwellings nearby were huts where brickworkers lived, a few cottages, and an occasional gipsy camp.
  77. ↑ Rollin, Jack, ed. (1990). Rothmans Football Yearbook 1990–91. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 81. ISBN 0-356-17911-7.
  78. ↑ Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'Attendances', pp. 20–21.
  79. ↑ "Fifth round official figures". The Times. London. 13 February 1939. p. 5.
  80. 1 2 3 Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'St Andrew's', pp. 193–96.
  81. ↑ Sharrock, Gordon (22 February 1999). "Wanderers middle men hailed as the best". Bolton Evening News. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  82. ↑ Tattum, Colin (27 April 2009). "Railway End to be named after Blues legend Gil Merrick". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  83. ↑ Connor, Neil (26 October 2005). "Blues unveil stadium plan". Birmingham Post. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  84. ↑ Tattum, Colin (24 December 2006). "Blues still hoping for new stadium". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  85. ↑ Tattum, Colin (9 March 2007). "Blues revive bid for new stadium". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  86. ↑ UK Parliament. "Localism Act 2011 Chapter 20 Section 88". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  87. 1 2 Barnfield, Stacey (2 November 2013). "Birmingham City fans succeed in getting St Andrew's awarded Asset of Community Value status". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  88. 1 2 "Rivalry Uncovered!" (PDF). The Football Fans Census. December 2003. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 July 2012.
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  90. ↑ "Sleeping Iron Giant". National Recording Project. Public Monuments and Sculpure Association. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  91. ↑ Lewis, pp. 167–68.
  92. ↑ "Official Blues supporters' clubs". Birmingham City F.C. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  93. ↑ Lawton, James (18 June 2005). "Bowyer and Birmingham given notice that fans' loyalty to the shirt is not blind". The Independent. London. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  94. ↑ Tattum, Colin (12 May 2008). "Thanks for the noise, Alex McLeish tells Birmingham City fans". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
    "David Gold 'hurt' by Birmingham City fans attacks". Birmingham Mail. 12 May 2008. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
  95. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 120.
  96. ↑ "Welcome". Blues Trust. 27 May 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  97. ↑ Thomas, Dave, ed. (13 May 2000). Made in Brum.
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  100. ↑ Murray, Bill (1994). Football: A History of the World Game. Aldershot: Scolar Press. p. 184. ISBN 978-1-85928-091-1., cited in Greenfield, Steve; Osborn, Guy (1996). "After the Act? The (re)construction and regulation of football fandom" (reprint). Journal of Civil Liberties. 1. ISSN 1362-3451. Retrieved 22 January 2009.
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  102. ↑ Dillon, William; Lauder, Harry. "The End of the Road". A Celebration of Sir Harry Lauder "Laird of the Music Hall". Archived from the original on 25 April 2008.
  103. ↑ "Every Prospect of a Good Final". The Times. London. 5 May 1956. p. 4.
  104. ↑ Boyden, Malcolm (6 March 1993). "Ross finds ways to turn airwaves blue". The Times. London. Retrieved 23 March 2012 – via NewsBank. Govan was the man who first sang the Blues anthem Keep Right on to the End of the Road on the way to Birmingham's 1956 FA Cup quarter-final against Arsenal. The song spread quickly among the players—and then to the fans.
  105. ↑ Lewis, p. 63.
  106. ↑ Lewis, p. 11.
  107. ↑ Matthews, Complete Record, p. 35.
  108. ↑ Birmingham City plc (company flotation prospectus). Shore Capital for Birmingham City plc. February 1993. p. 1.
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  129. ↑ Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'Attendances', pp. 30–31.
  130. ↑ "Last game to decide". Daily Mirror. London. 2 May 1946. p. 4.
  131. ↑ "Brum just there". Sunday Post. Glasgow. 5 May 1946. p. 11 – via British Newspaper Archive. (Subscription required (help)).
  132. ↑ Rollin, Jack (2005). Soccer at War 1939–45. London: Headline. p. 247. ISBN 978-0-7553-1431-7.
  133. ↑ Matthews, Encyclopedia, 'Appearances', pp. 12–15.
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  142. ↑ "Birmingham City winger arrives on loan". Blackpool F.C. 26 July 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
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  145. ↑ Dhaliwal, Jaskirt (10 October 2005). "Birmingham City Ladies Football Club history". BBC Birmingham. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  146. ↑ Leighton, Tony (8 November 2009). "New Birmingham City owners pledge to support women's team". guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
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  153. 1 2 Matthews, Complete Record, pp. 62–63.
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