This years Championship fixture list has a familiar look to it, last season we played Birmingham in an evening game and it is the same again this season, so here is all the information that you need.

The Ground

St Andrews has been the home of Birmingham City since Boxing Day 1906, so this will be the 120th anniversary in a few months time.

It has been rebuilt during that time and the oldest part of the ground is the main stand, which was burnt down in WW2 and subsequently rebuilt and reopened in 1956 and just to show there was no hard feelings, it was German club Borussia Dortmund who were invited to be the opponents.

The other 3 sides of the ground were rebuilt between 1994 & 1999, although the lower tiers of the Tilton Road and Kop stands were closed for asbestos-related repairs for approaching three years, only reopening fully in November 2023.

In 2024 the ground saw a partial renaming for sponsorship reasons and it is now called St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.

It now has a capacity of 29,409, last season saw attendances vary between the 25k mark and 28k, so there are usually around 1-2,000 empty seats in the house, their opening home fixture this season against Bristol City saw just over 27,000.

Getting There>

By Road

It is a simple drive from Southampton, take the M3 North and then follow signs to Newbury at Winchester on to the A34.

Follow the A34 towards Oxford and then to the junction with the M40 and head north towards Birmingham, then at the Junction with the M42, take the exit towards the M6 and leave at Junction 5 signposted Solihull and follow directions to Birmingham & the Stadium.

The total mileage is around 134 miles and the sat nav for the ground is B9 4RL.

Parking

There is no actual parking for cars at the ground and so it is a question of finding street parking or local businesses that offer parking on match days.

One word of caution regarding street parking, over the past year or so, there has been a spate of vehicles on the street being targeted and quickly stripped of vital parts in the engine.

Most of this was done in the industrial area in Digbeth just North of the ground where the gangs that do this have few passers by to disturb them, so I would advise that if you are going to park up near the ground, then find either paid parking or a safe looking residential street.

The police have made big strides in cutting this crime down with patrols etc and have made arrests, but there are still issues with it.

By Train

Birmingham New Street station is around 1 1/2 miles from St Andrews, so around a 25/30 minute walk.

The nearest station is Bordesley, which is about a ten-minute walk away from the ground. It is served by trains from Birmingham Snow Hill and Birmingham Moor Street, although these are infrequent, but it would save you around 20 minutes of your walk.

With this game being an evening kick off and no trains back to Southampton after the game, there probably won't be many going up by train.

The Away End

Saints fans as they have been at our last few visits will be located in the Gil Merrick/Railway End, this is the nearest stand as you walk up from the City Centre.

It has a great view, but a reputation for having stuff being thrown by the home supporters both to your left and in the seating area above, so keep your wits about you.

It has big spacious concourses and the usual football ground fare including alcohol.

Eating/Drinking Outside the Ground

There is no designated away pub but there are a few pubs dotted around the area and most are ok with away fans as long as they are fairly discreet and not other midlands teams who are rivals.

Some recommended pubs include

The Old Crown – 88 High St, Deritend, Birmingham B12 0LD
The Wellington – 37 Bennetts Hill, Birmingham B2 5SN
The Old Joint Stock Pub – 4 Temple Row W, Birmingham B2 5NY

If you are staying in the City Centre then you would walk down through Digbeth towards the ground and there are a few bars etc in that area, so if you are coming from that direction that is probably a good area to have a pre match drink.

Quirky Facts.

The Peaky Blinders TV series is set in Birmingham, where the original gangs operated, but the street scenes are filmed in Liverpool.

Birmingham has more mileage of canals than Venice, although I have to say that having visited both Cities, Venice wins hands down.

Believe it or not Birmingham is noted for it's food, The popular balti curry was not invented in India but in Birmingham in the 1970s in an area now known as the Balti Triangle. Other British delicacies that call the City home include Cadbury chocolate, Bird's Custard, and HP Sauce.

Birmingham is generally acknowledged to be the home of heavy metal, a genre started by Black Sabbath who although from Birmingham all lived in the Aston area of the City and supported Villa.

Birmingham is often called the youngest city in Europe, because nearly 40% of its residents are under the age of 25. This might also suggest that it is not a healthy city to live in as people don't seem to live as long as in other areas of the country.

It does have some links to Southampton, the anchor of the Titanic was made in the foundries of the Black Country, the industrial area just to the North West of the City.

It is the most accessible city to get to in the UK, apparently 90 % of the population can get to Birmingham within 4 hours, I am not sure what mode of transport they are using as I have usually found the trains to be awful and the motorway system around it clogged, so perhaps they mean by helicopter.

There was a point in 1875 when three quarters of all pens in the world had nibs made in Birmingham, that is something to write home about I would say.

*In 1945 at the outbreak of WW2, the Chief Constable ordered the ground's to be closed because of the danger from air raids; it was the only ground in the country to be closed due to that reason and not damage. It was re-opened after the matter was raised in Parliament, but perhaps they tempted fate as it was badly damaged during the Birmingham Blitz:

The Railway End and the Kop suffered damage as a result of bombing, while the Main Stand burnt down when a fireman mistook petrol for water.

* In 2013, the Birmingham City Supporters' Trust's application for listing St Andrew's as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) in other words "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.

This was approved by Birmingham City Council. and this act 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.

* The club nickname is "Blues" although no one is sure how this nickname came about or why it continues to be used.

* The club does have some celebrity fans including 1970's comedian Jasper Carrott, minority shareholder American Football Player Tom Brady, ELO's Jeff Lynne, UB 40's Robin Campbell, The Streets, but not Ozzy Osbourne who lived in and supported local rivals Aston Villa or Prince William who also supports the claret and blue team in the City.

All Photos Via Reuters