The Stadium Saga

11 Oct 2021 | 18 comments

,Last month the Trust issued a statement concerning the situation with regards to the stand closures and requesting a full explanation and an apology from the club.

We want to update members on where we are now.

We have continued to press the club requesting greater information on the closures and the refunds. We have received no reply over and above the public statements that we have all seen.

The communication and customer service on this whole issue continues to be absolutely lamentable and unacceptable. Barnsley have just announced a similar issue with their West Stand. In contrast to Blues, Barnsley swiftly and openly communicated the situation giving clear choices to their fans, inviting them in to view alternatives and offering refunds for those not wanting to sit elsewhere and refunding the difference for those who chose to sit in a cheaper seat elsewhere. In short, all the things you would expect from a well-run club with a focus on customer service.

Meanwhile back at Blues, fans are still awaiting refunds from games played nearly two months ago. The club promised to refund fans who were not allocated tickets and those who were allocated tickets but did not receive them.

The Trust considers the situation to be totally unacceptable and calls for the following:

  1. The Club held a forum for fan groups before the season started and promised that these would be regular events. The Trust requests that the club organises another of these in October where fans can have dialogue with the club on the current situation.
  2. For members to let the Trust know whether they believe they are entitled to refunds and whether they have received them yet so we can build up a picture of the state of play.
  3. The Trust is also looking into the rights of fans in this situation including for those fans who have been moved to a cheaper seat and have, in effect, been overpaying.

If you are not currently a member of the Trust please consider joining to help us hold the Club to account (see information in the section below).

Blues Trust

Membership

Want to be a full member with voting rights?

We have options for 1 and 2 years at £5 per year.  There is also a 5 year membership for £20 so you get 5 years for the price of 4.  See information and options here.

By making comments on the above article, you agree to Blues Trust retaining your email address should we need to make contact with you for admin purposes.   Let us know at admin@bluestrust.org if you do not wish us to do this.  We will not give out your email address to any 3rd party sources.

18 Comments

  1. Phil Hodges

    The most damaging thing they have created is apathy amongst fans , by treating us like idiots they have pushed us away and I am not the only one who’s lost interest !

    • John Ramsay

      Absolutely agree Phil, Barnsley have shown how communication with the fans should be handled. It seems to me that the club don’t care about the fans and any criticism is just ignored. I’ve said it before but we are just treated like mushrooms, kept in the dark and then have shit thrown over us.

  2. Matt

    Can someone please contact Mike Ashley who is said to be nterested in purchasing derby county and ask him to consider buying the sleeping giant that is birmingham city!

    • Malcolm Jackson

      No one will touch the club as it has too much baggage. Ground is too hemmed in now for serious expansion and is just not able to supply the income streams to build the club much beyond its current position. Professional football has moved on substantially this last ten years while we have been in decline. Sad to say I think that decline is terminal

  3. Sausage n Egg

    we are just a means to an end for these faceless chancers ..the puppets that are the “face” of the club are clueless and have learnt nothing about how to run a football club and the traditions and family ties that goes with it and what it means to fans..it is more than just football and it is being eroded away .The spirit is at an all time low among many..I cannot for the life of me understand the sarcasm shown on other fan forums towards the Trust everytime a blog is posted? still they can always fall back on the merits of red or brown sauce when they have bugger all to squinny about rather than direct any shite to those at the club that warrant it

  4. Stan Moye

    After contacting the EFL and also speaking to Daz Hale on Radio WM Football phone in l did get a response from Mr Edward Zheng. Daz Hale was brilliant, and l received several off air text messages with updates.
    I also received my Stoke City refund, but nothing since. As detailed in this excellent article l’m losing £10.21 each game l go to due to being relocated in a cheaper seat than the season ticket area l purchased.
    Let’s all hope this latest media coverage will generate a positive response, but l’m not holding my breath. Collectively we should all stick together, and if you’ve not yet done so give serious consideration to joining Blues Trust, after all it’s cheaper than a pie and a pint at the game. KRO

  5. Mitchell Bray

    Stan Moye’s comments really hit the spot. This season is already shaping up to be challenging both on and off the field. Each season we expect fortunes to change but deep down we know that until there is a rock bottom regarding everything at the club then treading water will be the norm. Blues Trust may well be the salvation in years to come especially if the club want a continuity of younger generation support. Stadium issues and the fans money spent for their seats reflect the attitude by a club still lucky to have loyal support.

  6. Eileen Goode

    I believe the media in Birmingham including TV need to give a lot more coverage about what is happening at Blues and shame the club into doing the right thing.

  7. Steve Joyce

    The stand issues are as mentioned by everyone else a complete shambles.To treat our supporters in this way I’m afraid is totally unacceptable as is not refunding the money in ticket costs to season ticket holders who have paid months in advance for their chosen seats.To take the money in the first place must be seen as more than questionable.The area around and inside the ground shows exactly that people with the money at the club have absolutely no interest in looking after our match day experience as it looks like a club going out of business to me.The supporters will lose interest and what’s left at that point.

  8. Stephen Wookey

    Despite 3 phone calls to the Blues Ticket Office totalling 4 hours I am yet to receive a refund for either the Stoke or Bournemouth matches. My friends have also not received their refunds. All fans receive is a succession of pathetic excuses which would simply not be tolerated elsewhere. This ongoing saga is symptomatic of the shambolic mismanagement of the club by the owners who couldn’t give a toss about the supporters. The lack of communication and customer care is pitiful.

  9. Tilton Rod

    Two really good pieces this week. Well done Blues Trust. And well done…again…Mitchell. Some excellent observations from readers too.

    Whichever way you slice it, we are in a dreadful mess. The club is an embarrassing shambles.

    Lots I could say, but the single biggest issue for me is the contempt the club is showing toward us supporters. Say what you like about Sullivan, Gold and Brady…and I had my doubts about them at times…but at least they fronted up when things were not going well.

    The silence from the club is compounded by the public anonymity of senior officials. Who, and where, are the people running the club on a day to day basis? A couple of examples. Lungi Macebo, Chief Operating Officer? Ian Dutton, Chief Commercial Officer? Heard of them…? Heard from them…? No, thought not. But check out what they say about themselves and their roles on line. Remarkable given the current circumstances.

    Even Almajir, who many of us admire for his investigative work, cannot get responses from the club when asking pertinent questions. The Company Secretary, of all people, apparently fails to respond.

    No one, it seems, is prepared for accountability.

    I dared to hope when Mitchell mused about alternative owners. But only for a brief moment. It is fanciful of course. We’ve got what we’ve got and that is not likely to change anytime soon.

    My appeal to the club…owners, officials, whoever…is change your approach. And change it fast. You are alienating a whole generation of Blues fans and many may decide that the club is simply not worth it. And once that happens, you won’t get them back in a hurry.

    KRO.

  10. Malcolm

    Still not received a refund for the Bournemouth game. The way the club have handled this is an embarrassment to say the least, but shows the total incompetence of all involved. Our next home game is in 10 days time and we still have no idea what the situation will be. Not only is this situation unacceptable for season ticket holders, it has completely destroyed the chances of any casual fan, or those not able to afford season tickets, or with work or family commitments, to see a game this season. These are potentially the next generation of Blues fans, dismissed without a second thought. The owners of this club are a complete disgrace!

  11. CLIVE RATHBONE

    Me and my mate have paid for our seats in Club class
    We have been relocated in the Main stand and for the last game in the Gill Merrick .
    We have not received refunds for the Stoke game there was also supposed to be the option of a refund for the Bournemouth game if you didn’t want to relocate as after that we were told we would be back in our own seats. It looks increasingly likely that the Kop will be closed for the rest of the season as we get strong along game by game.
    No sign of any refund for moving to cheaper seats.
    Add to that we now have to walk further to the ground due to the clean air zone AND we in freefall yet again.
    THIS WILL BE OUR LAST SEASON.
    But then we said that last season and the one before that and the one………. But how long can we expect to be treated like mugs??????????

  12. Stan Moye

    I am absolutely raging, so l will attempt to write this as calmly as l can.
    How many Clive Rathbone’s are there, l too purchased a Club Class season ticket. After contacting the EFL and Daz Hale at Radio WM, and dropping off a personal letter at reception. l was fortunate as it now appears to get a refund for the Stoke game. I also had an email from Edward Zheng stating the virtues of “our club class members” blah blah blah. Now l get an email announcing “Cuisine Club” yeah you get a drink, food and a seat in the executive area, think they might mean Club Class.
    So if your using that area for hospitality clients, why can’t you come up with a plan to accommodate the mugs who paid monies up front for what? The apparent contempt for the supporters is disgusting. The owners of OUR club should be embarrassed by the sentiment shown to the supporters. I was hoping a local journalist would get hold of this a dig deep and get us some truthful answers. Lee Bowyer and the team for me now are of second importance. Like Clive, the faceless owners won’t be getting my money ever again. I’m Blue through and through, but personal principles come way above anything for me.

  13. Mitchell Bray

    Stan Moye. Again your points are very clear and I am sure everyone feels your anger. Yesterday a close friend and thoroughbred bluenose said exactly what you now think about the team and results being secondary. He said that tomorrow’s Albion game is literally of little importance to him- hence his overall disgust with his treatment after decades of loyal support.

    • Stan Moye

      Thank you Mitchell, at least l feel you, Linda Magner and the Blues Trust members are listening. But how the hell do we get an in at the board to make them aware of the negative undercurrent amongst a broad spectrum of the support that is potentially undermining the efforts of the team.
      They’re either so hard faced or being ill advised as to the public relations approach. Poor gentleman Jack Wiseman must be turning in his grave.

      • Mitchell Bray

        This is a horrible situation Stan. Unbelievable to think this could be happening at a football club. We try to make allowances, we try to be sympathetic and we try to understand etc. When nothing quite makes sense we tend to look deeper and that’s when it becomes toxic. What are the reasons for such scant regard for the paying public and why oh why are we humiliated with a wall of unbelievable silence. My genuine belief is that we as supporters need the club more than they need us. That’s quite a statement. That’s my 100% view. Next comes the awful thought that something is awaiting full disclosure by the club and perhaps that’s when all the pennies will drop. Stan mentions Jack Wiseman and I had hoped many moons ago that son Michael would have been a useful name to engage with.Apparently not.

Affiliations
Football Supporters' Association
The Football Supporters’ Federation and Supporters Direct have joined forces to become the Football Supporters’ Association
Link to Tilton Talk Show
Share This