{"id":584161,"date":"2025-11-21T06:38:19","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T06:38:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/584161\/"},"modified":"2025-11-21T06:38:19","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T06:38:19","slug":"i-had-one-doubt-about-birminghams-wacky-new-stadium","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/584161\/","title":{"rendered":"I had one doubt about Birmingham’s wacky new stadium"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n Twelve chimneys, one ambitious plan to make a stadium the heartbeat of a year-round complex that relies on HS2 – can it work? <\/p>\n

DIGBETH \u2013 By order of the Peaky Blinders, Birmingham City\u2019s new \u201cPowerhouse\u201d stadium will feature a grand total of 12 chimneys, and with Santa spoiled for choice one will even house the city\u2019s highest bar. Chim chim\u2026 sherry?<\/p>\n

This was the day a vision finally supplemented the dream for curious Bluenoses and the club\u2019s ambitious owners Knighthead. Now for the hard part, making them concrete (with a whole load of brick) and ensuring this \u00a31.2bn, 62,000-seater stadium is billowing smoke by the 2030-31 season.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was not the time for a shiny new structure,\u201d Birmingham co-owner Tom Wagner<\/a> said on Thursday. \u201cIt was time for a rebirth. To celebrate the old and make it relevant and inspiring for this and future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Peaky Blinders effect is plain to see. The TV show\u2019s creator, Steven Knight, was the local voice during the design process, and it was at his Digbeth Loc Studios \u2013 a mile away from the site Birmingham plan to transform into the Sports Quarter complex \u2013 where the plans were unveiled in front of fans.<\/p>\n

\"\"Birmingham City\u2019s new stadium will feature 12 chimney towers (Photo: Heatherwick Studio)<\/p>\n

\"\"Inside the stadium Blues hope to be ready by 2030 (Photo: Heatherwick Studio)<\/p>\n

No expense was spared, and with Jude Bellingham<\/a> featuring prominently in the promo video, Wagner\u2019s response was swift when asked if he hopes the new stadium could one-day entice the England midfielder back.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuh,\u201d he said, before being asked to expand. \u201cI think Jude is the greatest player on the planet today. I don\u2019t think we\u2019ve seen his potential yet. It would be a great story.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though a hark back to the city\u2019s industrial past, the focus was on the future. There are hopes to host NFL games and global competitions, while a retractable roof and moveable pitch enables a flexibility to stage concerts as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo often stadiums feel like spaceships that could have landed anywhere, sterilising the surrounding area,\u201d Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director of Heatherwick Studio, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis stadium grows from Birmingham itself \u2013 from its brickworks, its thousand trades, and the craft at its core.\u201d<\/p>\n

My one nagging stadium doubt: answered<\/p>\n

The stadium promises to be the heartbeat of a year-round destination that also plans to feature markets, cafes and restaurants.<\/p>\n

The Sports Quarter proposals therefore exceed those typical for a new stadium. Undoubtedly Tottenham Hotspur elevated the matchday experience in this country, encouraging supporters to gather for hours before and after games, but Spurs\u2019 stadium is not a 365-day-a-year destination.<\/p>\n

So what makes Blues so confident<\/a> they can be different?<\/p>\n

It is my nagging doubt. As a Brummie who grew up when Star City \u2013 a vast entertainment complex just off the Spaghetti Junction \u2013 was unveiled, the initial excitement was quickly tempered by the reality of its location. It was a mission to get to, and after a couple of visits, I plus many friends and family have never been back.<\/p>\n

The city does not need another white elephant, therefore, but naturally Wagner came prepared and believes people will want to go back, particularly thanks to the \u00a3400m tram extension which was given the green light earlier this year, and the eventual completion of HS2.<\/p>\n

\"\"Blues want the stadium to be the hub of a Sports Quarter (Photo: Heatherwick Studio)<\/p>\n

\u201cI would have been a lot more sceptical about the ability to use this every single day if it were not for national government coming through with the transport funding. It becomes incredibly accessible,\u201d Wagner said.<\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately what will drive the interest is the quality of entertainment. I can promise you the people we\u2019re working with know exactly what those acts want because they\u2019re the ones who decide where they go. We know who to go to to make sure we have a place that is full the whole time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eliot Postma, Heatherwick Studio partner and group leader, then weighed in. \u201cRight now the site is an \u2018island\u2019 but it has so much potential to become a desire line for the communities surrounding it.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got Digbeth next door which I\u2019ve read is the coolest place in the UK right now. There\u2019s so much opportunity for this to be a stepping stone.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo many stadiums when they touch the ground on a non-matchday, they give nothing back. For it to become the heart of that community, is a big part of the thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knight then completed the hat-trick in the post-reveal press conference, the lifelong Bluenose referencing the change in how we shop as a reason why this place can still thrive.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re seeing city centres suffering,\u201d Knight said. \u201cI think now people will go to a location for experiences. Not to come away with shopping, but to have an experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we have that hub, then that\u2019s the future. Whether the chimneys reflect something from 150 years ago or not, that is the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tYour next read<\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\"Article <\/a><\/p>\n

To which, Wagner noted: \u201cPeople are looking for more analogue experiences, to interact. This can be where analogue meets digital.\u201d<\/p>\n

For now, that\u2019s me told, and convinced, and while there will be many Blues fans who will not care a jot about anything beyond watching their team play football, the wider elements promised are vital to this project becoming a success.<\/p>\n

Come for the chimneys, come back for the entertainment? As 2030 approaches, it will become clearer just what that entails.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Twelve chimneys, one ambitious plan to make a stadium the heartbeat of a year-round complex that relies on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":584162,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7820],"tags":[855,1205,748,9030,393,4884,43786,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-584161","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-birmingham","8":"tag-birmingham","9":"tag-birmingham-city-fc","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-championship","12":"tag-england","13":"tag-great-britain","14":"tag-sports-comment","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115586317077507009","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/584161","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=584161"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/584161\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/584162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=584161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=584161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=584161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}