Birmingham City announced plans on Thursday for a new 62,000-seat stadium, envisioned as a venue for Premier League games, major concerts, and NFL events.
The Championship club, which includes NFL legend Tom Brady as a minority owner and financier Tom Wagner as chairman, described the venue as the “beating heart” of Birmingham as part of a larger £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion) development initiative.
The planned Birmingham City Powerhouse Stadium, featuring 12 towering chimneys, is set to be constructed in Bordesley Park, East Birmingham, with hopes of opening for the 2030-31 season.
“We are aligning the city and the club for a future filled with greatness,” Wagner remarked during the announcement at Digbeth Loc Studios in Birmingham, emphasizing that it would serve as a “beacon of excellence for Birmingham on the global stage.”
The estimated cost for the stadium itself stands at £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion), with additional investments directed toward transforming the area into a vibrant destination for sports and culture.
“This represents a significant milestone for Birmingham City Football Club, establishing a home that embodies our ambition to compete at the highest level,” Wagner stated.
A promotional video for the stadium’s proposal featured both Brady and former Birmingham City player Jude Bellingham.
When shown images of the stadium, Real Madrid star Bellingham simply exclaimed, “Wow.”
Wagner noted that the new stadium could represent a “great coming home story” for Bellingham, praising him as “the greatest player on the planet today” and emphasizing the potential impact he could have both on the pitch and within the community.
“If we can provide him the platform to reach his full potential, it’s a remarkable narrative — a coming home story, a Birmingham story, an England story,” he said.
Brady added that fans can expect an incredible experience, stating that the stadium is likely to attract top musical acts.
Plans also include hosting major boxing events and NFL games.
“We aim to host a wide array of events at the stadium and would love to compete for the opportunity to hold NFL games as they become available,” Wagner commented.
Although Birmingham presently competes in the second tier of English football, these stadium proposals reflect the ambitious vision of the club’s ownership.
The team last played in the Premier League in 2011, the year they secured the English League Cup — one of only two major trophies the club has won in its 150-year history.
Currently, Birmingham City plays at St Andrew’s Stadium, which has served as their home since 1906 and holds just under 30,000 fans.
The new stadium is being designed by Heatherwick Studio in partnership with Manica Architecture, with the projected capacity making it the fourth-largest club stadium in England, behind only Manchester United, West Ham, and Tottenham. It will feature a retractable roof and a movable pitch.
“This will become a venue where the world’s finest will want to perform, and a must-visit location for experience-seekers from all over the globe,” Wagner remarked. “A place that the local community will proudly call home.”
Ownership of Birmingham City is held through Knighthead Capital Management, co-founded by Wagner.
Information sourced from The Associated Press and PA contributed to this report.