UK Stadiums: St Andrews, Birmingham, England
St Andrews in Birmingham, in the Midlands, is the home ground of Birmingham City football club. For sponsorship reasons, the stadium is known as St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.
Stands & Capacity
The four stands at the stadium are the Kop Stand along one side of the pitch, the Tilton Road Stand (or The Tilton), behind one goal, the Gil Merrick Stand (formerly the Railway End), and named after a former Blues goalkeeper and the Main Stand, along the opposite side to the Kop.
The stadium has a capacity of 29,409 making it one of the top 40 largest football grounds in Britain.
Opened in 1906, the ground replaced the clubs old Muntz ground. The opening fixture was against Middlesbrough.
New Stadium Plans
However the ground may not be home for too much longer. Birmingham City F.C. is planning a dramatic move away from its historic St Andrew's ground with a new 62,000-seat stadium at the heart of a broader "Sports Quarter" development in the Bordesley Green area of Birmingham.
The proposed stadium, often referred to as the "Powerhouse", is designed to include a retractable roof and a movable pitch so it can host football, concerts and other major events, and its striking appearance will be defined by twelve chimney-like towers inspired by the city's industrial heritage.
The current cost estimates for the venue itself are around £1.2-£1.6 billion (roughly $1.5 billion), and when combined with the wider Sports Quarter - which will include public spaces, commercial facilities and training infrastructure - the total budget could exceed £3 billion.
The design team is led by London-based Heatherwick Studio (and designers of the new Routemaster London bus) in collaboration with US-based MANICA Architecture, with a separate training centre designed by Populous. Local planning is expected to progress through 2026 with an eye toward completion around the 2030-31 season.
"Too often, stadiums feel like spaceships that could have landed anywhere, sterilising the surrounding area. Ours grows from Birmingham itself - from its brickworks, its history of a thousand trades, and the craft at the core of its culture." - Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director of Heatherwick Studio.
Club History
Birmingham City (nicknamed 'The Blues') presently play in the Championship and were last in the Premier League in the 2011 season when they were relegated under Alex McLeish, though they did win the League Cup that year beating Arsenal 2-1 at Wembley.
The team has never won the Football League First Division. Their highest-ever league finish was sixth place in the 1955-56 season. Again the Blues have never won the FA Cup, the club were runners-up in 1930-31 and 1955-56. City have won the League Cup twice in 1962-63 and 2010-11. In Europe Birming City reached the final of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in both 1958-60 and 1960-61 but did not lift the trophy on either occasion.
Birmingham City Football Club was founded in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance by members of Holy Trinity Church in the Small Heath area of Birmingham, England. The club initially played friendly matches before joining organized competition in the 1880s.
In 1888, they turned professional and became a founding member of the Football Alliance in 1889. When the Alliance merged with the Football League in 1892, Small Heath joined the newly formed Second Division.
The club was renamed Birmingham F.C. in 1905 after moving to St Andrew's ground reflecting its broader city identity. In 1943, it adopted its current name, Birmingham City F.C., to emphasize its civic status.
The record attendance at St Andrews is 67,341, set on February 11, 1939, for an FA Cup fifth-round tie against Everton.
Club Icons
Some players known to a wider audience who have played for Birmingham City include Trevor Francis who made his debut for the club aged only 16 and became Britain's first £1 million player following his move to Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest. A statue of the late player stands now outside St Andrews.
Gil Merrick is Birmingham City's all-time record appearance holder, having played 551 senior matches for the club between 1946 and 1959. The goalkeeper was a club legend who also managed the team to their first major trophy, the 1963 League Cup. Frank Womack holds the record for most appearances by an outfield player with 515.
Joe Bradford is the club's all-time record goalscorer, netting 267 goals in 445 appearances. Midfielder Jude Bellingham (now at Real Madrid) was an academy graduate who became the club's youngest ever player and scorer before his record transfer to Borussia Dortmund.
Popular foreign players who have represented the club include Sweden's Sebastian Larsson, Serbia's six foot, seven inch Nikola Zigic, Australian Stan Lazaridis who spent seven seasons with 'The Blues', Finland's Mikel Forsell's five years at the club won him many admirers and mentions must be given to both Christophe Dugarry (2003-2004) who arrived on loan scoring 5 goals in 16 appearances to help secure the club's Premier League status at the time and Obafemi Martins from Nigeria, best remembered by Blues fans for scoring the winning goal in the 89th minute of the 2011 League Cup Final against Arsenal.
Managers
Some managers of note at St Andrews include Steve Bruce (2001-2007) who was widely regarded for establishing the club in the Premier League, achieving promotion in 2002 and 2007, and maintaining a solid top-flight presence.
Trevor Francis (1996-2001), the late, legendary former player oversaw 290 matches, the most in the club's history, leading them to the 2001 League Cup final.
Alex McLeish (2007-2011) achieved promotion in 2009 and won the 2011 League Cup, the club's major modern trophy.
Arthur Turner (1954-1958) led the club to the Second Division title, their highest league finish (6th in 1956), and the 1956 FA Cup Final.
Gil Merrick (1960-1964) the former goalkeeper coached the side to their first major trophy, the 1963 League Cup.
Barry Fry (1993-1996) secured the "double" of the Second Division title and the Football League Trophy in the 1994-95 season.
Pubs
The Old Crown on Digbeth High Street, a historic, popular spot is roughly 15 minutes away. Other frequented options include The Roost on Cattell Road and Bainsy's, which are known for pre-match atmospheres. For those looking for sports bars, BrewDog Birmingham on John Bright Street in the city center and BOX Brindleyplace at 1-2 The Water's Edge are a couple of choices for watching games.
Major Honours
League
Second Division / First Division / Championship (level 2) Champions: 1892-93, 1920-21, 1947-48, 1954-55 Runners-up: 1893-94, 1900-01, 1902-03, 1971-72, 1984-85, 2006-07, 2008-09 Play-off winners: 2002
Third Division / Second Division / League One (level 3) Champions: 1994-95, 2024-25 Runners-up: 1991-92
Cup
FA Cup Runners-up: 1930-31, 1955-56
Football League Cup Winners: 1962-63, 2010-11 Runners-up: 2000-01
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Runners-up: 1958-60, 1960-61
Associate Members' Cup / Football League Trophy / EFL Trophy Winners: 1990-91, 1994-95 Runners-up: 2024-25
Birmingham Senior Cup Winners: 1905
Accessibility
St Andrews has wheelchair accessibility for both home and away supporters, with 88 spaces available throughout the stadium, 67 spaces for home supporters and 21 wheelchair bays are allocated to away fans. Home supporter wheelchair bays are located in The Kop, Tilton, East Paddocks and the Gil Merrick stand. The away spaces are located in the Gil Merrick stand with the away supporters. There are no restrictions on seating for ambulant supporters, provided the area is safe. The stadium also includes accessible toilets and viewing platforms.
Access - Getting There
St Andrew's Stadium is located in Bordesley, Birmingham, easily accessed via train, bus, or walking from the city center. The closest station is Bordesley (0.6 miles, match days only), with Birmingham Moor Street (1.4 miles) and New Street (1.9 miles) nearby.
Key bus routes are the National Express bus services 17 and 60, with free match day shuttles also available from the city centre. Passengers need to show season and match day tickets to board.
By car from the north exit the M6 at junction 6 (A38(M)) towards Birmingham. Then follow signs to Bordesley/Small Heath. From Leeds take the M1 South, transitioning to the M6 South, and exit at Junction 6 (Spaghetti Junction) for the A38(M) into Birmingham. Traveling north from London take the M40 northbound, merge onto the M42, and use the A45 towards Birmingham city center.
Address: Cattell Road, Birmingham, B9 4RL, UK
Nearby Hotels
At the top end in Birmingham try the Clayton Hotel Birmingham or the Jurys Inn on Broad Street.
Nearer to the ground are both The Royal George Hotel and Aparthotel Adagio Birmingham City Centre.
See a list of hotels in Birmingham.
More UK Stadiums
Kirklees Stadium (John Smith's Stadium)
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