Billionaire owners disgrace Birmingham City as they suffer a devastating Championship relegation.

Birmingham City has lost its Championship status.

Despite a 1-0 victory over Norwich City on the last day, there were still boos at St Andrews. The team is playing in the English football third division for the first time since the 1994–1995 campaign.

With the club in sixth place, John Eustace, who guided Blackburn Rovers to safety on the last day of play, was fired as head coach in October, bringing an end to a dreadful season for the Midlands team. “Misalignment with the leadership of the club” was the stated reason for his departure by the club’s billionaire owners.

After Eustace, Wayne Rooney took over as manager, but he only lasted 15 games before quitting after nine losses and dropping to 20th place. After Tony Mowbray, the new manager, needed a medical leave of absence and was unable to get the side out of the bottom three, Gary Rowett was chosen interim manager.

Birmingham still had a chance to make a comeback, but Blackburn, Sheffield Wednesday, and Plymouth Argyle were all focused on staying out of the relegation zone going into the afternoon. Rovers were three points ahead of the Blues on Wednesday, but more importantly, Rowett’s team’s goal differential meant that victory would be highly significant.

Liam Palmer gave the Owls the lead at Sundown with 29 minutes remaining on Saturday afternoon, marking the first real attack by Danny Rohl’s club. Before halftime, Josh Windass extended that lead, giving the Yorkshire side a sliver of comfort.

Joe Edwards of Plymouth was the next to score against Hull City, applying further pressure on Blackburn. In the event that Birmingham scores, Leicester would need a draw to stay in the Premier League and escape relegation.

Birmingham’s goal against Norwich through Paik Seung-ho would have done little to ease John Eustace’s and his team’s worries. Blackburn didn’t take long to reply, causing moans around St Andrews.

With his 26th goal of the year, Sammie Szmodics solidified his position as the division’s leading scorer. Deep into stoppage time, the attacker added another.

Birmingham’s relegation occurs less than a year after Shelby Companies Limited, owned by Tom Wagner, agreed to purchase all of St Andrews Stadium and 45.64 percent of the team. Birmingham Sports Holdings, a Hong Kong-listed firm, lost control of the team to the American.

At Knighthead Capital Management, which manages assets worth about $9 billion (£7.25 billion), Wagner is a co-founder. Shelby Companies Limited is a tribute to the television series Peaky Blinders, which is situated in Birmingham. However, following a turbulent season, the new owners will now have to watch their team play in the third tier of English football.

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