Grimes to drive Birmingham City fiscal health

Article posted by Coliseum, August 4^th, 2025

Image: Birmingham City

The English Football League (EFL) Championship team Birmingham City F.C. (UK) recently announced the appointment of Jon Grimes as the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Existing Revenue Streams effective immediately.

‘bcfc.com’ stated that Grimes has been working with the club in a consulting capacity since February and has helped reshape the key elements of its commercial strategy and plans.

Preston (UK)-based the English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League it is the oldest football league in the world and was the top-level football league in England from its foundation until 1992 when the top 22 clubs split from it to form the Premier League (the highest level of the English football league system). The Football League was rebranded as the ‘English Football League’ (EFL) starting with the 2016-2017 seasons.

The Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England (UK). Formed in 1875 as the Small Heath Alliance it was renamed the Small Heath in 1888, the Birmingham in 1905 and the Birmingham City F.C. in 1943. The team competes in the English Football League (EFL) Championship, the second level of the English football league system.

The 29,409-capacity St Andrew’s, known since 2024 for sponsorship reasons as the St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park, is an association football stadium in the Bordesley district of Birmingham, England (UK). It has been the home ground of the Birmingham City Football Club for more than a century.

‘bcfc.com’ further stated that bringing with him over 30 years of experience in consumer leadership, global partnerships, retail, and digital transactions Grimes joins the club at a landmark moment in its history. His appointment comes as the club continues to grow its commercial revenues and with the ongoing development of the Birmingham Sports Quarter on the horizon.

The Birmingham Sports Quarter is a planned £3 billion development spearheaded by the Birmingham City Football Club’s new Owners – the Knighthead Capital Management, a New York (US)-based investment firm. It will center on a new 62,000-seat stadium and encompass a wider sports and entertainment complex aiming to revitalize a previously underdeveloped area of East Birmingham. The project is envisioned as a world-class venue for sports and entertainment attracting international events and creating thousands of jobs.

Grimes previously held senior leadership roles during a 25-year career at the American multinational technology corporation Microsoft including as the Senior Director responsible for the company’s multibillion-dollar consumer business across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He played a central role in the success of the iconic global brands such as Xbox (a video game brand), Windows (a graphical operating system), Office (a suite of software applications), and Surface (a family of touchscreen-based devices) – all of these developed and owned by Microsoft.

In his new role at the Birmingham City F.C. Grimes will lead the club’s commercial operations overseeing ticketing, hospitality, retail, and conference and events.

Opined Jeremy Dale, Birmingham City head honcho, “I’ve had the pleasure of working with Jon previously. He is world-class at running the complex consumer businesses and building key relationships. He is no stranger to the club, or the City. He is a longtime ‘Blues’ supporter and native of Solihull (a town and Metropolitan borough located in the West Midlands of England). We’re delighted to have Jon join the Birmingham City F.C. as we continue to strengthen our senior leadership team and drive our global ambitions while staying true to our local roots.”

Grimes’ appointment represents another step in the club’s evolution under Knighthead’s ownership – a period defined by transformation, modernization and a renewed focus on community and high performance.

Maintained Grimes, “Growing up in Solihull – being a Bluenose (Birmingham City fans) for as long as I can remember – it’s a heartfelt privilege to join Birmingham City at this major turning point in our club’s history. I’m honored by this opportunity to work with our commercial teams driven by creating exceptional experiences for our fans and partners as we evolve and forge our strategy for such a bright future.”

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