Birmingham unveil plans to build unique underground tunnel linking fans to new £3 billion 62,000-seat stadium complex as Tom Brady's Blues look to outshine Wrexham with return to Championship

The Blues, who count NFL legend Tom Brady among their investors, are setting the most ambitious of goals in the West Midlands. They may find themselves in League One at present, but the hope is that they will soon be rubbing shoulders with the Premier League elite.

Third tier rivals Wrexham – with Hollywood superstars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney at the helm – boast a similar dream. The Red Dragons have revealed blueprints for their own redevelopment work at SToK Racecourse, with talk of that ground eventually housing 50,000-plus spectators.

Birmingham are going even bigger, with Tom Wagner and Knighthead Capital Management preparing to construct a state-of-the-art “Sports Quarter” on a 60-acre piece of land that will include a 62,000-capacity stadium, office spaces, social hubs, a hotel and fan park.

Said site will be linked to the Birmingham New Street train station by a 1.5-mile tunnel. Wagner has said, as per The Sun: “Subways are very expensive and complicated to develop. We thought of an idea to simply tunnel under the existing rail lines and connect New Street station to the sports quarter and use electric buses running underground. It could transport thousands of people an hour. We think it would cost roughly £20 million.”

Wagner said that the proposed Sports Quarter, which will also feature restaurants and a training facility, will include a new stadium – one that replaces the club’s current St Andrew’s home - that is built around a bold “spaceship” design.