Birmingham are prepared to offer their top transfer targets huge salaries to move to St Andrew’s – well above what most Championship clubs can afford.
Blues, whose ownership group includes NFL great Tom Brady, have already secured the League One title and will end the season on 111 points if they win their final two fixtures. They will compete in the Championship next season.
Yet this is just the starting point for the club, who will seek to emulate Ipswich by jumping from League One to the Premier League in consecutive seasons. And Mail Sport understands Blues will push the boat on wages in an attempt to fulfil that ambition, with salaries even as high as £30,000 a week thought to be within their budget.
Since the coronavirus pandemic, most Championship clubs have had to tighten their belts in order to stay in line with EFL spending rules.
Yet Birmingham are so confident in their ability to generate revenue that they will make another serious push this summer.
Though Brady plays no active role in recruitment, in the past Blues are believed to have offered Zoom calls with the seven-time Super Bowl winner when trying to persuade players to join them.
Birmingham City have won promotion to League One and are on track for a huge points haul
Blues owner NFL great Tom Brady has previously played a small role in recruiting players
The club broke the League One record fee comfortably last summer with their £15million move for Fulham’s Jay Stansfield
Birmingham signalled their intentions last summer when they paid about £15million to sign Jay Stansfield from Fulham – comfortably a record fee for a club in England’s third tier.
Stansfield, who is also easily the club’s top earner, has repaid Blues with 24 goals in 44 matches in all competitions.
Birmingham’s aspirations are not confined to the pitch alone. Last year the club announced a £2billion plan to transform the east of the city, including a new stadium and training complex and creating 3,000 jobs, using Manchester City’s Etihad Campus as its inspiration.
