Where Birmingham City's new stadium will rank in the biggest EFL Championship grounds | OneFootball

FLW compares the size of Blues' planned new stadium to those currently in the EFL

Birmingham City's plan to become one of English football's elite in the coming years has been one of the most talked-about stories coming out of the EFL at present.

Many ownership groups have tried and failed to deliver such promises, both in B9 and at several other 'sleeping giants' in the Championship, League One and League Two. However, something feels rather different when it comes to Tom Wagner's ambition at St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park, which was only heightened after relegation and a solitary season of third-tier football for the first time since 1994/95.

Blues are now returning to the second-tier as a different beast altogether compared to the club which suffered a final-day relegation 12 months ago, despite finishing on 50 points - one of the highest-ever tallies to be accrued whilst relegated from the second-tier.

The thought of clubs moving from their traditional and spiritual homes has become a prominent topic in recent years, with sections of the West Ham United fanbase feeling a loss of identity after the Hammers' switch to the London Stadium, whilst Everton's mens team rounded off their 133-year association with Goodison Park last weekend ahead of a switch to the 52,888-capacity Hill Dickinson Stadium on Bramley Moore Dock.

However, with talk of Birmingham moving into a 62,000-capacity stadium at the heart of a £2-3bn Sports Quarter complex, FLW looks at how it would compare with stadiums that are currently set for second-tier football heading into next season.

Birmingham City are looking to move into new stadium by 2029

Shortly after St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park was restored to full capacity in February 2024, it was announced that Knighthead had purchased the 51-acre site at Birmingham Wheels, stating that the ambition was to have a new stadium built by 2029.

It will be just a stone's throw away from the club's current home, where they have seen plenty of 'Joys and Sorrows' since 1906, with St Andrew's holding a current capacity that would be just over half of the new stadium with a current figure of 29,409.

Wagner has continued to meet with government officials regarding the development in the Bordesley district, recently stating that failure to deliver the ambitious but exciting project that will generate over 8,400 jobs "would be a crime against the city of Birmingham."

Transport links have also been a key facet to the plans, with a £1bn tramline extension from the City Centre to Solihull recently revealed, with the hope that it can reach the new stadium by the time it opens, before running through Bordesley Green towards Heartlands Hospital and Birmingham Airport.

Unsurprisingly, a proposed capacity of 62,000 would make Blues' new stadium one of the biggest in the country, never mind the second-tier.

In 2024/25, the stadium with the highest capacity in the Championship was the Stadium of Light, with Sunderland's home able to house up to 48,707 spectators, with Hillsborough the second-biggest with a capacity of 39,859.

Only three stadiums in next season's Premier League will also be greater, in the form of Old Trafford, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and London Stadium, with Blues' proposed new arena set to be bigger than the likes of Anfield, the Emirates Stadium and the Etihad Stadium.