Wrexham v Birmingham City: How two Championship clubs became global names

On the face of it, it all seems like healthy rivalry and banter, right?That certainly appears to be true among the big names associated with the two clubs. But make no mistake, Wrexham and Birmingham possess a ruthless desire to taste further success. On the back of clinching promotion, Wagner said reaching the Premier League next year “is certainly the goal” for the Blues.Upon taking control of Wrexham, then in the fifth tier National League, Reynolds and McElhenney said one of their goals was to “establish Wrexham AFC as a Premier League club”.The astonishing off-field work at both the Stok Cae Ras and St Andrews has been crucial in aiding the efforts of those on the pitch.Wrexham announced a record turnover of £26.7m for the year ending 30 June, 2024 while Birmingham posted a revenue of £29.6m for the same period – a record for a club then in the third tier, albeit the financial year was when they were a Championship side.It has translated into huge success for both sides, and this season could produce more of the same.After a somewhat frustrating start, Wrexham have improved of late – earning notable away wins over Millwall and Norwich City while going into the Birmingham fixture having lost just once in eight games across all competitions.After his side’s 1-1 draw with Leicester City – who competed in the Premier League last season – Parkinson said his side were “definitely evolving as a team”.As for the Blues, they have also shown they can compete following their return to the second tier, having gained 11 points from their opening eight league matches.But when kick-off comes on Friday, it will be a case of business as usual as far as Wrexham midfielder Matty James is concerned.”The owners are superstars in their own right in different industries, and I think naturally that brings a huge amount of media attention that can sometimes kind of distract you away from what is actually going on,” said 34-year-old James.”I think certainly the outside noise is very, very big. But for us as a group I think when you are at Wrexham, we are kind of used to it a little bit.”



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