Birmingham City supporter groups led by the Blues Trust have launched a collective campaign against the clubs owners.

Two banners, including one carrying a campaign message directed at the Club’s ownership, were erected during Blues’ 3-3 draw at home to Derby County.

The message: ‘Delay No More’.  Aiming to reflect the feelings of supporters on the terraces at Andrew’s, the ‘Delay No More’ campaign delivers a stark message to the Birmingham City hierarchy that the time has come for the Club to be sold.

Since relegation in May 2011, no fewer than 39 players have been sold or released by the Club, leaving the team reliant on free transfers, loans signings and youth products to plug the gaps that have been left.  Manager Lee Clark has been left with a wage budget that, barring Nikola Zigic, is the second lowest in the division, as the Club fights for financial survival – all against a backdrop of acting Chairman Peter Pannu receiving a seven figure salary since he has been appointed director.

Delays in accounting, a lack of transparency at Board level and a lack of communication with fans have all resulted in increasing frustration among the Club’s supporter base.
Speaking of the campaign, Blues Trust chairman Steve McCarthy said:

“We emphasise the campaign is a peaceful attempt at raising the profile of our Club’s current plight.  Yesterday, we saw that a concerted effort to apply pressure on the current regime can have positive connotations, both on and off the pitch.

“We are also keen to emphasise that in we do not condone any chants or behaviour that contains racial overtones.

“As the Delay No More campaign gathers momentum, we will continue to work on a wider strategy that will hopefully lead to a more sustainable future for our Club, details of which will be available in due course”.

 
David Turner, lifelong Birmingham City fan and designer of the campaign concept, said:

“The campaign is an opportunity for our supporters to peacefully drive a direct message to the current owners to act now before it’s too late.

“The words ‘Delay No More’ were discovered by a great piece of journalism, and from there I created the spoof badge. The Club feels like it is being strangled by the owners, so it made sense to show that literally – a dragon tightly wrapped around our beloved club crest that is slowly squeezing the life out of it.

The beauty of the words is that they have a double meaning. It’s a call to action to the Club’s ownership but it’s also a crude insult when translated”

For further information on the Delay No More campaign, please contact:

▪ Steve McCarthy: 07824 307715
▪ David Farrell: 07971 340734